Crescendos and Cupcakes
by RD-loves-RA
Summary: We all have our regrets, our demons. In the settling dust of a conflict resolved, one pony's past comes rushing forth to greet her. With the help of her friends, both old and new, she will face those demons and finally try to come to terms with her actions, and herself. The story continues, relationships evolve, and the question is finally answered: "What happened in Manehattan?"
1. Bad Memories

**This story is a direct sequel to "Falling from the Sky," located at: /s/8088644/1/**

**If you haven't read the first installment, read this story at your own risk.**

**(I ****do not**** own anything other than the plotline. MLP:FiM is property of Hasbro.)**

**Crescendos and Cupcakes**

Chapter 1: Bad Memories

A deep orange sky dotted with bright magenta clouds graced the rolling hills of Sweet Apple Acres with a serene atmosphere. A slight breeze moved gracefully through the orchard, carrying with it the familiar scent of fresh apples and sod. Sitting quietly on a hill a few hundred yards from the Apple Family's farmhouse, directly under one of the many majestic apple trees, was a small, light pink pony.

The wind stirred naturally through her mane, ruffling each strand of forest green and deep navy blue softly. The air tickled her bare back, making her coat stand on end. Her bright, neon green eyes were focused on the horizon, not faltering in the slightest. She did not smile, nor did she frown. The mare merely sat quietly beside the full grown sapling, experiencing all the sensations around her.

The sun slowly sank lower on the horizon, bidding farewell to the day and ushering in the quiet and peaceful night. Here she sat, on the cusp of twilight, marveling at the tranquility of the moment. She'd even go as far as to say enjoying the serenity.

"There y'are, Aurora! Ah've been lookin' all over for ya!"

_Annnnnnnd it's gone…_

The petite pink pony turned her head and found the source of the disturbance. Trotting up the hill was Applejack, the proprietor of Sweet Apple Acres, and the eldest daughter of the Apple family. As the farmhand walked closer, Aurora couldn't help but notice the color of her coat almost matched the deep orange tint the sky had displayed just a moment ago.

The wind was dying down, but a rogue gust swept underneath the mare and attempted to knock the brown Stetson hat from her head. The squall rustled her blonde mane ever so slightly, to which she didn't pay the slightest bit of attention to. Her mane and tail were tied at the ends, so a little wind wouldn't do much to upset the earthy, yet attractive look she so effortlessly carried.

"It's gettin' mighty late. Supper's about ready if'n you wanted to head inside." Applejack said, her piercing green eyes scrutinizing the pink pony. "What're y'all up to out here all by yer lonesome?"

"I'm just enjoying the quiet." Aurora said flatly. "_Was_ enjoying the quiet."

"Hehe, sorry 'bout that." Applejack said with an apologetic smile. She turned towards the sunset, and took the beautiful sight in for herself. "It's beautiful, ain't it?"

"It's just a sunset." Aurora said solemnly. "There's one at the end of every single day."

"Well shucks, Ah'm just an apple farmer. _Ah'm_ here workin' hard every day to keep this here farm up and runnin'. Just 'cause Ah'm here every day don't make any of the other days Ah'm here any less important." Applejack said, passing on her metaphor like a true country pony.

"I suppose you're right. We have to appreciate something as extraordinary as this, no matter how often we get to see it." Aurora replied, a sad smile creeping onto her face.

"Ah may not be the pony movin' the sun round like that, _but_ Ah sure as sugar love the sunset like the mare that does." Applejack said appreciatively, finally looking back at the pink pony. "Ah'll leave ya alone fer a bit. We hope to see ya at dinner."

"I'll be in shortly." Aurora replied softly.

"Sounds good. Ah reckon it'd be a good idea to bring yer vest in with ya." Applejack noted as she turned and began her walk back to the farmhouse. "Ya never know what kinda critters will try to mess with it."

"Thank you, Applejack." Aurora looked down at the rugged piece of clothing at her hooves, her smile slowly fading away.

The thick barding of her combat vest remained largely unchanged since the day she received it. Its expertly woven fibers meshed together into an intricate pattern designed to stave off a large amount of physical and magical trauma. The threads, once a deep blue reminiscent of the stripes in her mane, were now slowly fading. Signs of wear were evident, as were numerous indications of damage to the fibers, both old and new.

The vest itself was a confusing object for Aurora to hold onto. The contradicting emotions attached to it were innumerable. It was her safety net, protecting her from harm on multiple occasions. Without it, she may not even be alive right now. On the other hoof, it was given to her as an accessory to one of the defining periods of her life. One of the worst times as well.

It had been so long since she had taken it off. There were never any true moments of peace. Always watching her back, never sure of where the next danger would come from. She traveled in it, she ate in it, and she slept in it. Hell, sometimes she even _bathed_ in it. Removing the vest from her body was like she was removing a part of herself. Granted, it was a part of her that carried her worst fears and insecurities, but without it, she felt naked.

She stared at the memento of her recent past, and soon became indifferent to it. Aurora fished through one of its many pockets and pulled out a dirty scrap of paper. She held it in between her hooves for a moment, and contemplated opening it up to read the message written on the inside. She already knew exactly what it said. She wrote it after all. But something kept compelling her to read it over and over again, as if it wasn't bad enough that she had written it all those years ago.

With strenuous effort, Aurora put the paper back in the pocket she had retrieved it from and looked away. The small pink pony wore a pained expression on her face, and as she clenched her eyes shut, a few tears managed to escape and fall to the ground. She stood up and wiped her eyes clean before she slung the vest over her back and walked in the direction of the farmhouse.

By the time she had made it to the porch of the building, night had managed to creep up on the orchard. The darkness slowly enveloped everything around it, leaving the farmhouse as the only oasis of light for a good mile. The sweet smell of a home cooked meal wafted from inside the house, beckoning Aurora to partake.

Pushing away the heavy feelings swirling around her head, the petite pink pony wiped her hooves and pushed open the front door of the farmhouse, stepping inside and closing the door behind her. She removed her vest from her back and rested it on a small table near the front entrance. A few steps into the kitchen, and Aurora found herself being greeted by the entirety of the Ponyville division of the Apple family.

Applejack was sitting on the other side of the table with her grandma, Granny Smith to her left at the head of the table. To her right, at the opposite end of the table, was her older brother Big Macintosh. On side nearest Aurora were two seats, the one on the left being occupied by Applejack's little sister Applebloom.

The small pink pony greeted everypony in the room and took her seat in between Applejack's siblings. Aurora looked at the spread on the table and found yet another heavenly assortment of dishes in front of her. The past few weeks had been nothing but a day of hard work, followed by an amazing meal at dinner, with the occasional lulls in between to visit the other ponies in town.

Aurora did her best to work hard while she was on the farm so that she could repay the Apple family's kindness. They opened their home to her during her stay in Ponyville and had gone the extra mile to make her feel at home as well, going as far as to treat her like one of the family. She still had trouble believing ponies could be so welcoming.

"Sorry to keep you all waiting." Aurora said apologetically, looking around the table with a smile.

"Fiddlesticks, dearie. We weren't waitin' fer longer than a minute." Granny Smith replied, brushing back strands of her aged white mane from her face. "Ain't that right, kids?"

"Eeeeeyup." Big Macintosh replied as usual, his bright red face remaining as stoic as ever.

"Ah just sat down mahself." Applejack added.

"Are you guys kiddin'? Ah've been waitin' here fer _ages_!" Applebloom said, shifting her gaze to the pink pony. "Rory, you best say yer sorry."

Aurora looked over at the pale yellow filly with a look of mock frustration. Her neon green eyes were focused on Applebloom intently, closely examining the angry frown she wore. The filly didn't budge however; Aurora could see the resolve in her bright orange eyes. The staring contest continued for a few more seconds, and then she finally made a move.

The small pink pony extended her hoof, and tussled the filly's bright red mane, ruffling each strand of hair and displacing the large red ribbon she wore. Applebloom's serious demeanor immediately shifted from stern to playful, and she began to struggle and laugh during her attempts to escape Aurora's hoof.

"Stop it, Ah give up! Haha, you ain't late, you ain't late!"

"No, I'm not. I applaud that stare of yours though, it's become very convincing." Aurora said, smiling widely. She removed her hoof from the filly's head and laughed. "You really had me going there for a second."

"If'n y'all are done over there, we can start the meal anytime." Applejack said with an endearing look.

"Applejack, would you like to be the one to say grace?" Granny Smith asked.

"Well, Ah don't see why not." Applejack closed her eyes and bowed her head slightly, the rest of the table following suit. "Mother Celestia, we thank you fer the food, please bless it ta our bodies, we ask in Luna's name, Amen."

A round of agreement sounded across the table as everypony opened their eyes and began filling up their plates. For a good ten minutes, the only sounds heard from anypony were the sounds of food being passed around, and gratified chewing. Finally, it was Applebloom who broke the silence.

"Hey Aurora, can Ah ask you somethin'?"

"Of course, Applebloom."

"Why do you wear that vest all the time? Ah mean, it looks nice n'everything, but what's it for?" The light yellow filly asked curiously.

"Now Applebloom, that there's a personal question." Granny Smith scolded the filly idly.

"Gee, Ah'm sorry." Applebloom replied with remorse.

"No, it's fine. It's a valid question." Aurora said, turning towards Applebloom. "Honestly, I don't really _need_ to wear it anymore. It's more of a habit than anything."

"Well then why don'tcha try to break it?" The filly pressed the question.

"Applebloom, that's enough." Applejack this time stepped in.

"Well, it holds a lot of memories for me, good and bad." Aurora said, trying to find a way to explain it to the filly. "I guess you could say it's…a part of me."

"Ya mean like Applejack's hat?" Applebloom asked enthusiastically.

"I suppose it is a little like that." Applejack tipped her hat as Aurora looked over at the blonde maned earth pony.

"Ah guess Ah get how you feel." Applebloom reached up and adjusted her ribbon familiarly.

"Ah reckon everypony's got somethin' they're attached to, ain't that right Big Mac?" Applejack said, noting the yoke still around his neck.

"Eeeeyup."

"So does that answer your question, Applebloom?" Aurora asked, smiling at the filly.

"Yea, I guess it does."

"While we're asking questions, how's everypony else doin'?" Applejack asked, taking a bite of her dinner in between sentences. "Ah ain't had the time to go visit them in town myself."

"Oh, well Pinkie Pie is acting suspicious, but that's normal. She's been busy at the bakery. The same goes for Rarity down at Carousel Boutique, with all those orders she's been aiming to fill." Aurora said flatly, running down the list of ponies in her head. "As for the two happy couples, they've been sticking together since we got here. When they aren't together, Thundervolt and Rainbow Dash have been working the weather beat, and Twilight and Fluttershy have been doing whatever it is they actually _do_ all day. Life as usual."

"Ah'm glad to hear everypony's gettin' along well enough…and that Pinkie's bein' herself." Applejack said with a small smile. "Ah really should get around tah freein' some time up."

"Oh, that reminds me! Applejack! You were still gonna walk me over to Sweetie Belle's tomorrow, right?" Applebloom asked hopefully, widening her smile considerably.

"Ah, shoot! Ah knew Ah'd forgotten somethin'." Applejack said, causing the filly's smile to deflate. "Ah need to fertilize the western orchard tomorrow, Applebloom. Ah don't think Ah'll have the time to"—

"But Applejack, you _promised_!" Applebloom tried arguing, disappointment evident in her voice. "Ah don't wanna walk there all by mah lonesome!"

"I can walk with you to town, Applebloom. I don't mind." Aurora said, turning her gaze towards Applejack. "If that's alright with you of course."

"Ah reckon it's alright with me if it's alright with her." Applejack said with a smile.

"Oh boy, thank ya Rory!" Applebloom said, jumping up and hugging the pink pony, almost knocking her from her seat in the process.

"Yea, thank ya kindly Aurora. You sure it ain't goin' outta yer way?" Applejack sounded concerned.

"Not at all. It gives me an excuse to head into town for a while." Aurora looked admiringly at the little yellow filly next to her. "Besides, it just means I get to spend more time with Applebloom."

"Aw, shucks!" Applebloom giggled, sending a chuckle around the table.

"So then it's settled. Tomorrow morning bright and early, we'll head out." Aurora smiled warmly at the filly.

For the rest of the night the Apple Family and their guest enjoyed dinner as usual, each member of the group filling their stomachs heartily and partaking in friendly conversation between one another. They even got around to arguing over who could lift more: Big Macintosh or Aurora. All in all, it was a wonderful night.

A night pleasant enough to distract Aurora from her previous thoughts, if only for a few hours.

* * *

"Tell me again, why am I here?"

"_You're_ here because life is unfair and you're not _allowed_ to sleep."

"C'mon Vinyl, you can't expect a pony to function without resting!"

"You're right. I just like to make you miserable. How long were you asleep before I got there anyway?"

"Well let's see… You got me at eleven, and it's about twelve now. I went to bed at three this afternoon…carry the four"—

"Eight hours!? You're whining about getting eight hours of sleep!?"

"Some of us like to wake up and _not_ be among the living dead."

"Shut up, Reggie."

The two ponies fell silent and the still sounds of the quiet night slowly took over. Vinyl Scratch looked at the train tracks a few feet away and sighed, pushing her electric blue mane from her face. Her purple goggles began to feel constricting on her forehead, and so she removed them, taking great care to slide them over her horn and around her neck. She could feel the cool night air tickling her skin, even under her pure white coat.

The train station was unusually silent, but considering their location and the time of night, Vinyl wasn't surprised. She'd lived in big cities all her life and rarely ventured out into more rural areas such as this. Coming all this way from Fillydelphia, the silence was especially unsettling. She turned her ruby red eyes towards her companion and studied him for a moment.

Reggie stood in front of her, oddly upright and attentive for a unicorn complaining about a 'lack' of sleep. His mane fell chaotically to a medium length, covering the back of his neck with jet black strands framing dark grey. His coat was a dim, yellowish khaki and his eyes a deep magenta. His cutie mark resembled a trio of question marks, which Vinyl assumed applied to his weird and rather questionable personality. Reggie looked over and noticed Vinyl observing him.

"Is there something I can assist you with, Vinyl?" The colt said derisively, his prominent voice projecting tersely off the air around him.

"Nope, I'm just trying to figure out new ways to insult you based on your appearance." The white mare replied with equal sarcasm.

"Please, have you seen me lately? I'm gorgeous." Reggie said with mock arrogance. "That's more than anyone can say for you."

"Oh really? Take a look at this ass and _tell me_ I'm not smokin'!" Vinyl replied confidently, spinning around slowly and wiggling her flank suggestively.

Reggie obliged and took a moment to watch as Vinyl Scratch moved around. He had spent enough time with her in the past to know exactly what he was looking at already. The feature he couldn't help but notice was indeed her flank, as it was really the only thing she was moving so ardently. Her rear end was rounded well and her legs were toned, showing off her bridged eighth note cutie mark as the focus. The khaki stallion looked up and prepared his response.

"Vinyl, your ass reminded me, I think I left some cottage cheese out at my place." Reggie said with a devious smile. "I should go back and throw it out before"—

"You're aware I'm not above violence, _right_?" Vinyl said, whipping the khaki stallion in the face with her tail.

A low rumbling became audible in the distance, causing the two unicorns to stop their argument and look down the tracks. A lone beam of light cut through the darkness as the thundering got louder and louder, adding the clicking of metal on metal to the cacophony of noise.

"Train's here." Vinyl observed distantly.

"Where are we going again?" Reggie asked curiously, scratching his chin idly.

"Ponyville. There's someone in town I haven't seen in a long time." Vinyl said, seemingly lost in thought. "I figured you'd want to see her too."

"Wait, you don't mean _her_, do you?" Reggie asked doubtfully.

"Nope, it's exactly who you're thinking of." Vinyl said with a small smile. "We're going to see Aurora."

* * *

_**Hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of Crescendos and Cupcakes! I'm open to questions and comments, so don't be shy. Let me know what you think!**_


	2. Shield

Chapter 2: Shield

The new day brought with it a sharp increase in temperature as the weeks drew ever closer to the summer season. Though the sun had only risen a few hours ago, the areas in and around town were already bathed in mid-day light. Early morning in Ponyville was a very lively time of day for the rustic town; with all the shops opening for business, ponies of all shapes and sizes were roaming about, getting a prompt start on their daily tasks.

Aurora and Applebloom had started their walk from Sweet Apple Acres about a half hour prior, and had just entered the town proper. During the long walk along the outskirts of town, Applebloom had regaled Aurora with tales of how she had tried fruitlessly to receive her cutie mark.

She had tried so many times already, but hadn't gotten any closer to getting it. Aurora almost felt bad for the filly, having been disappointed so many times, but it was all part of growing up. She looked at the filly and found enjoyment watching her boundless enthusiasm work its course, envying her free spirit in the slightest. The petite pink pony remembered those days well. Before her life in the lab, Aurora had been content. Now, it felt like she was missing something.

Moving deeper into town, more and more ponies began to cross the two pony's paths. Some would make eye contact and smile, most would just carry on with whatever errand they happened to be running, and the occasional few would share a verbal greeting with the pair. Aurora had been in Ponyville long enough to have been introduced to a few ponies here and there, who now knew her by name.

Some of the first ponies she met during her stay were Rose and Lily Valley, who lived in close proximity to Sweet Apple Acres. They both grew flowers together, sharing a plot of land between themselves. Nice, kind ponies that you'd expect from a town such as Ponyville. Aurora also met Raindrops, a pegasus working some of the smaller jobs on the Ponyville weather team. She would sometimes stray out to the borders of town, where she'd see the pink pony and wave.

It wasn't exactly deep social interaction, but it was something Aurora had never really partook in. She enjoyed looking at strangers and seeing something other than the worst for a change. Until recently, Thundervolt had handled the majority of the socializing for the two, thanks to his uncanny ability to fraternize like a moron. Waving at a stranger and getting a smile made Aurora feel…normal.

Aurora and Applebloom were nearing the end of their journey, when the petite pink pony spotted two young fillies crossing their paths. One was a bright pink color with a striped purple mane, wearing what looked to be a crown of some sort, and the other was wearing ornate glasses that accented her grey coat and silver mane.

Aurora put on a smile at first, thinking they were friends of Applebloom's. Her grin quickly faded when she noticed the light yellow filly shrink into herself abruptly. This was already too familiar to the pink pony, so darting her eyes from place to place for a moment, Aurora found an escape route.

"Hey, mind if we stop for a second?" Aurora said, ushering the filly towards the open door of the nearest establishment. "I really need to get a…"

Aurora paused and looked up at the building she was about to enter. Sugarcube Corner, the esteemed bakery of Ponyville, and Pinkie Pie's place of residence. Luckily, it was the perfect excuse. Who doesn't like an early morning sugar rush?

"Uh, a muffin?" Applebloom finished the mare's sentence in a confused tone.

"Yeah, sure. Whatever you say."

"Hey Applebloom, fancy seeing _you_ here." The crowned filly sneered, grinding at Aurora's brainstem.

"Howdy there, Diamond Tiara." Applebloom said with a defeated sigh. She nodded to the other filly with a similar expression. "Silver Spoon. How're y'all?"

_That's amazing, even their names are pretentious and irritating…_

"Oh we're great, as usual." Diamond Tiara said proudly.

"Well when _aren't_ we?" Silver Spoon added with a conceited laugh.

"True." Diamond Tiara shifted her gaze to Applebloom. "So what's today's strategy? Are you trying to get your cutie mark in baking again?"

"We all know how well that went the last time." Silver Spoon said sarcastically.

"No, Ah'm not, actually." Applebloom said. "And Ah put out the fire, so quit holdin' that against me!"

"Hmph, whatever. Who's your friend? I haven't seen her around before." Diamond Tiara asked, looking over to Aurora.

"I'm Aurora. And we're very busy, so if we could cut this short I'd greatly appreciate it." Aurora replied impatiently, trying futilely to mask her disdain for the little filly addressing her.

"Really? I mean you're already short enough as it is." Diamond Tiara said smugly, smiling at her companion.

"Yea, are you sure you shouldn't be in school with the blank flanks?" Silver Spoon added.

"Pretty bold of you two to be insulting someone more than twice your age." Aurora said indifferently, setting her piercing eyes on the filly.

Silver Spoon witnessed the change in Aurora's demeanor and started to back up uncomfortably. Diamond Tiara held her ground however, and prepared to make another poorly thought out insult. Before she had a chance to spit out her words, Applebloom stepped up to the plate.

"Who do y'all think ya are, insultin' my friend like that!?" Applebloom stomped her hoof on the ground with surprising power, surprising the two fillies before her. "Why Ah oughta take yer parent's jobs and discipline y'all myself!"

"Applebloom, I agree that these two aren't exactly well-behaved, but don't get mixed up with them like this." Aurora said thoughtfully to the light yellow filly. The pink pony glared towards the two antagonists and mimicked Applebloom's stomp, cracking the ground beneath her hoof. "Besides, they were just leaving."

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were both rendered speechless by the sudden shift in the air. They looked at one another and began to leave hastily, Diamond Tiara offering one last remark as they ran away with their tails in-between their legs. "We've got better things to do anyway. See you around, Blank Flank!"

"Sorry 'bout that. They're kinda the school bullies." Applebloom said, shaking the argument off. "Thanks fer stickin' up fer me."

"Kid, you didn't need me at all. You handled yourself amazingly." Aurora said proudly, beaming at the little yellow filly.

"Ya really mean it?" Applebloom asked in surprise, a huge smile on her face.

"I do. Keep that attitude, and nopony will ever push you around." Aurora replied. "Uh, but don't start hitting anypony. That generally doesn't go over well."

"Don't you worry 'bout a thing, Rory! We're close to Sweetie Belle's now, so if'n ya ain't got a problem with it, Ah'll walk the rest of the way myself." Applebloom said, turning towards her destination. "Ah'll see ya 'round!"

"Be safe!" Aurora yelled after the filly, who was already rounding the corner and moving out of sight.

Aurora kept watching the place she'd been previously for just a moment longer before stepping off the porch of Sugarcube Corner. She was in town now, and wasn't really sure of what she should do first. She could visit Twilight and see how she's doing, though the lavender unicorn was probably buried nose deep inside a book.

_Or in Rainbow Dash…_

"Oh…Oh, why?" Aurora asked herself as she attempted to erase that particular image.

"_Psssssst._"

Aurora whipped around towards the source of the noise and found nothing. She could have sworn she heard somepony making a…

"_Pssssst._"

…noise. Aurora looked around again, still finding nothing. Nopony else wandering the town seemed to be paying any attention to the small outbursts, clearly not aware that they were even happening. Aurora's eyes widened as she realized what was happening. She lowered into a defensive stance and began shifting her eyes back and forth, scanning for the threat.

"Pinkie Pie…? Where…where are you?"

"_Above you._"

Aurora looked up just in time to see the bright pink mare descending rapidly from the heavens. Pinkie Pie fell too fast for Aurora to avoid, and so she braced herself accordingly, accepting her fate. Just after preparing, Aurora felt the soft pink hooves of death wrap around her chest and arms with the crushing force of a boulder.

"H-Hello…Pinkie." Aurora said, struggling to breathe. The bright pink mare released her death grip and bounced to her feet with a wide smile.

"Hiya, Rory! I haven't seen you in a few days and now you're here! You should come inside so we can catch up because it's been so long and I wanted to talk to you about something and are you hungry?" Pinkie Pie said, ending her rant with a huge intake of air.

"I had a big breakfast today, Pinkie. What did you want to talk about?" Aurora asked curiously as she dusted herself off.

"Come on inside, I have to finish an order up but then I can tell you about the surprise!" Pinkie Pie said, ecstatically bouncing back into the bakery without waiting for an answer.

"You've piqued my curiosity, Pinkie. You have my attention." Aurora said, following the bouncing pink pony into the bakery.

Aurora walked into the bakery and looked around, taking in the sweet aroma of all the confections lining the displays. Cupcakes, éclairs, rolls, and donuts were among the many sweets tempting Aurora with their bright colors and expertly decorated glazes. Aurora's neon green eyes shifted towards Pinkie Pie as she stepped behind the counter, disappearing for a few moments.

"Hey Rory, what was that outside?" Pinkie Pie asked curiously as she fished through the cabinets out of sight.

"You mean Applebloom's little encounter?" Aurora asked idly. "It wasn't anything important. Applejack's little sister just handled some bullies while I watched. It was actually quite entertaining."

"Oh. I'm glad she isn't taking that kind of treatment from meanies like them." Pinkie Pie said with a smile and a tilt of her head. "That's not kosher!"

"Applebloom's a tenacious little filly. She knows how to pick her battles." Aurora said appreciatively. "She reminds me of myself at that age, come to think of it."

"Somepony's boarding the Memory Train heading down to Nostalgia Town." Pinkie Pie giggled, surfacing from behind the counter with a bowl and a large amount of flour. "I'm gonna get that order done as quick as a whistle. You sure you don't want anything, Rory?"

"I'll have anything that isn't laced with sugar." Aurora said, giving into the temptation of a small snack.

"How about one of my new super chocolate cosmic adventure swirl cupcakes! They're the sweetest cupcakes ever, baked with chocolate and fudge and white chocolate and caramel and"—

"Pinkie, I don't want to die today." Aurora arched her eyebrow skeptically at the hyperactive pony.

"How about a banana nut muffin?"

"That'd be great, Pinkie."

Pinkie walked into the kitchen and set down her cooking supplies. A moment later, she came out with a plate, adorned with the most gorgeous looking muffin Aurora had ever seen. The muffin beckoned to her like no other, and the petite pink pony had to force her mouth not to water. Pinkie smiled and bounced back into the kitchen to start her work, leaving Aurora alone with her thoughts.

_Applebloom is a tenacious little filly… She reminds me of myself at that age…_

* * *

Nineteen years ago, the city of Canterlot was bustling brightly with the usual ponies of class and prestige. It was still the shining capital of the Equestria, even before Luna made her return almost two decades later. Business was booming, trends were being set, and ponies were living in a time of undeniable prosperity.

Walking purposefully around the city, with her head barely reaching above the citizens knees, was a small pink filly with a forest green mane. She was a very short pony for her young age; that, coupled with the fact that she didn't have her cutie mark, was enough to make the young Aurora a target for harassment.

The little filly wore a bull's-eye on her back, but no matter how hard anypony tried, they were never able to hit the target. Aurora wasn't confident. She wasn't self-assured. She was barely motivated. One thing she _definitely_ wasn't however was fragile.

That isn't to say she wasn't picked on. There were always other fillies or colts that would throw an insult her way or even try to rough her up a little. There was just a serious lack of ponies that would ever try again. Though Aurora was quiet and reserved, she was able to handle herself. On the few occasions she'd ever stood up for herself, she had always made her stance very clear:

"Stay away from me, or you'll come to regret it." Aurora said flatly, ignoring the jeering look coming from the colt in front of her.

"Is that supposed to scare me or something?" He said, responding negatively to the small pink pony's threat.

"No. It's just a warning. I don't want any trouble. I never do."

"Hmph, always backing off from a fight, huh?" The colt said with irritation. "Go on, get out of here. You aren't even worth my time."

"Sounds good. Same time tomorrow?" Aurora asked sarcastically as she began to walk away.

"Shut up, Shorty!"

Aurora didn't look back at the colt, simply walking away as she always did. The town never even glanced in her direction, even as she was berated by a spoiled youth. It happened almost every day however, so she was used to it. She was almost out of earshot when she heard the colt start to run his mouth again.

"And who are you supposed to be?"

Aurora turned around and saw the colt had started to harass another filly her age. Unlike the small pink filly however, this little mare didn't seem to possess much resolve. The light gray filly looked legitimately scared as the _much_ larger colt advanced. Her purple eyes were filled with fear, and she looked like she was about to cry.

"M-My name…my name is"—

"M-m-m-my n-n-name is." The colt said, imitating the filly's nervous stutter rudely. "How about you say it instead of choking on it?"

"How about you leave her alone!?" Aurora yelled forcefully as she quickly ran over to the light grey filly's aid.

The colt turned and looked at the pink pony with contempt. "You again? Didn't I let you off with a warning?"

"I'm not sure. I thought I heard some words in between the grunts and the drooling, but I can't be too sure." Aurora replied cooly, boring her gaze into the colt.

"That's it! You're so dead!" The colt yelled fervently.

Aurora ducked under the colt's swinging hoof, and turned to see him stumbling over his own extremities. She was more nervous than anything, having a pony twice her size try to attack her, but she had to stay strong for the other filly, whoever she was. She couldn't let her down.

The colt came back towards her, presumably to head-butt Aurora. Without thinking, she turned around and reared up on her front legs, compressing her body. A second later, she straightened out, bucking with her legs as hard as she could in the colt's general direction. With a satisfying thump, she felt her hooves connect with the colt's face, and heard him fall to the ground crying.

"Owowow! My nose!" The colt yelled, his muffled cries punctuating the rest of the city's noise. "I think you broke my nose!"

"I thought it was bad when you grunted and drooled. Hearing you cry and complain is even more repulsive." Aurora replied boldly, walking over to the distraught filly. "If you ever harass this poor girl again, I'll make sure you feel that bad _everywhere._"

The colt wordlessly crawled to his feet, stifling his pain in an attempt to keep some of his dignity as he retreated back to whatever hole he had crawled from that morning. Satisfied that the threat was extinguished, Aurora turned her attention to the light grey filly before her.

"He won't be bothering you anymore. Are you alright?" Aurora asked with concern.

The filly brushed her dark grey mane from her face and looked up at the pink pony appreciatively. Her purple, tear-filled eyes lit up with gratitude, and the corners of her mouth turned upwards into a small, relieved smile.

"I'm…fine." The filly said calmly. "I haven't seen you around the city before. Who are you?"

Aurora stared at the filly pensively for a moment, and then revealed a wide smile of her own. She looked into the filly's purple eyes and spoke with conviction.

"I'm Aurora, your newest friend."

* * *

"Sooooooooo, how was it?" Pinkie Pie said rambunctiously, snapping Aurora out of her reminiscent stupor.

"Huh?" The pink pony looked up at the bright pink pony in confusion. "How was what?"

"Your flashback, silly!" Pinkie Pie said cheerfully. "By the thoughtful look on your face, I'd say it was a good one!"

"I wasn't in a flashback. I was thinking of somepony I used to know." Aurora said, attempting to reason with the hyperactive pony.

"Well yeah, that's what it was to _you_. But if somepony were watching your thoughts, they'd see it as a flashback, an interjected scene that takes the narrative back in time from the current point!" Pinkie Pie said, fixing her bright teal eyes on Aurora and spreading her already wide smile even wider.

"I'm not even going to dignify this insanity with a response, Pinkie." Aurora said, stepping away from the current topic. "So I'm assuming you've finished your work?"

"Yeparooni!" Pinkie Pie said gleefully. "I'm free to tell you about the thing that I was going tell you about after I was done working!"

"And that thing is?"

"You have visitors coming into town today!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed jovially, clearly happy about the surprise.

"Me? _Visitors?_" Aurora asked, clearly confused.

"That's right! They're going to be at the train station soon, so we should go and meet them there!" The pink pony bounced away from Aurora and out the door of the bakery, not bothering to wait for her to follow.

Having been the victim of a Pinkie Pie Surprise before, Aurora knew that whatever lay before her would undoubtedly be a draining experience. The petite pink pony steeled herself, and followed the bouncy mare out the door and accompanied her to the train station.

The actual journey took about three minutes, thanks to the train stations convenient location inside of town. Pinkie Pie was standing outside, waiting patiently for Aurora to catch up. As soon as she came within ten feet of the mare, Pinkie began bouncing again in excitement.

Aurora joined her friend and stood with her for about a half-hour, listening to her go on about her day in the bakery, and stories about times she'd had with her friends. Then the stories slowly shifted from normal and charming, to abnormal and discomforting. Tales of mystery and intrigue that only Pinkie could possibly understand, leaving Aurora to nod every now and then as she tuned out the majority of her non-sequitur.

The time passed quickly however, and the two pink ponies heard the unmistakable sounds of a train pulling into town. The smoke from the engines tower billowed majestically, leaving a signature trail behind it as the train approached. The brakes of the passenger cars squealed and the locomotive came to a stop in the station. Aurora and Pinkie watched as numerous passengers exited the vehicle, all with another destination in their minds.

"This is it, this is it!" Pinkie Pie said excitedly, turning to look at Aurora. "Take a look at who's here!"

Aurora kept her eyes on the train car, scanning for whomever it was Pinkie Pie insisted was visiting her. Aurora didn't expect to see anypony she knew, however a certain traveler caught her eye as she stepped out of the coach.

Her stark white coat and electric blue mane struck a familiar chord in Aurora's heart, and the trademark purple goggles resting on her forehead only confirmed her identity. Aurora couldn't muster up any words as the mare stepped onto the platform with her khaki friend, merely letting her jaw hang slack in response to their presence. The white mare fixed her ruby red eyes on the two pink ponies and grinned madly before speaking herself.

"Surprise!"

* * *

**_A little bit of boredom on my end made me decide to update today a little earlier than anticipated. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Leave your comments and questions below and have a great day!_**


	3. Summons

Chapter 3: Summons

"Are you just gonna stand there all day? Come here!" Vinyl Scratch said enthusiastically.

Aurora took a moment to process the command and happily walked forward into the white mares embrace. The two ponies squeezed each other tight and enjoyed the others grip for a good while before separating. Aurora couldn't take her eyes off of the new arrivals, still unbelieving of their presence.

"I don't understand; what are you both doing here?" Aurora said, looking in between Vinyl and Reggie with elated confusion.

"Well, I was dragged out of my comfortable bed and forced onto a _train_ to get here." Reggie said, shooting a less than serious glance towards Vinyl. "But once I heard we were coming to see you, I was a little less grumpy."

"Only until he realized that there wasn't a meal car." Vinyl added, sarcastically rolling her eyes.

"Yes, that was rather…_disappointing._" Reggie said, stalling on his last word. Aurora smiled, knowing full well the khaki stallion was stifling more complaints for her sake.

"Anyways, a mutual hyperactive friend of ours said you were in town and had taken care of your little problem." Vinyl nodded to Pinkie, who was still bouncing at Aurora's side. "How could we not come and see you after hearing that?"

"I don't know." Aurora said hesitantly, the memories of her confrontation still fresh in her mind. "Considering how I took my leave…"

"Look, that was over a year ago. You had to leave, and that's what you did." Vinyl said understandingly, shifting to a more serious tone. "I just wish you could have said goodbye to everyone. Not _just_ me…"

"I see…" Aurora said, biting her lip. "How did she take the news of my departure?"

"Yikes, uhhh…" Vinyl voiced uncomfortably. "You know that five stages of grief bologna you hear about?"

"…Yes?"

"Well, let's just say she skipped straight to anger and stuck right there. It's not a raging fire anymore, but…she's still simmering…" Vinyl said with a frown.

"Is that why she didn't come?" Aurora asked distantly.

"Nope! I only told Vinyl to come by. I figured she'd bring whoever she thought would be willing to make the trip." Pinkie added, wearing a slightly compulsory smile.

"Before you ask, I didn't tell her anything." Vinyl said, satiating Aurora's curiosity. "I didn't want to reopen any wounds before talking to you myself."

"That was probably for the best." Aurora said, forcing a small smile. "I don't even know what I'd tell her."

"Tell what to whom?"

Everypony looked towards the main road of the town, searching for the voice that had just called out. Pinkie happily bounced towards the source, identifying none other than Rarity, who was strolling towards the group at a brisk pace. Aurora's demeanor improved slightly as Rarity approached, lightening the mood ever so slightly.

"I'm so sorry to interrupt, but my curiosity rival's that of my dearly beloved Opalescence." Rarity said humorously. She looked over at the two new arrivals and her eyes lit up. "I don't think we've had the pleasure. My name is Rarity. May I ask whom I am addressing?"

"The name's Vinyl Scratch. It's nice to meet you Rarity." Vinyl answered cheerfully, offering a polite introduction.

"You look very familiar, and if I didn't know any better, I'd have sworn that name has come up in conversation before."

"You might know me through my stage-name. I go by DJ Pon-3 when I work." Vinyl replied.

"Oh my, you were the mare who orchestrated the music at the royal wedding of Princess Cadence and Shining Armor weren't you?" Rarity asked, recognition flashing across her deep blue eyes.

"Yup, that was me!" Vinyl said proudly, reaching her hoof over Pinkie Pie's shoulders and resting it there. "This hip little party pony got me the gig."

"I couldn't think of anypony better suited for the job!" Pinkie Pie beamed back at the white unicorn.

"Well you did an excellent job if I don't say so myself." Rarity said, turning her attention towards the khaki unicorn standing in front of her. "And who might you be?"

Reggie stepped forward slowly in an attempt to look suave, and addressed the mare before him politely. "I, miss, am Reggie. I have to tell you, it is an absolute pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"He's a sad alcoholic and he cries at the end of '_The Little Pony Who Could', _every single time." Vinyl said, grinning madly at Rarity, and beaming with pride as the khaki unicorn let out a defeated sigh.

"Well, there goes _that_." Reggie said, once again turning his attention to Rarity. "I was attempting to make a good impression on a beautiful young mare, but the thorn in my side hates it when other pony's think well of me."

"You can't prove that." Vinyl said mockingly. "Mainly because nobody thinks well of you in the first place."

"I think that's because everyone knows I associate with you of my own free will. Anyone that does that _clearly_ has some unresolved mental issues." Reggie said, pouring on the sarcasm.

"You two must have been raised in big cities outside this area. You've both dropped the 'pony' suffix." Rarity observed, probing further into the pair's origins. "I'm guessing somewhere around the eastern regions."

"Manehattan. Both of us were born and raised there. Luckily I didn't meet Vinyl until I had at least a few years of peace." Reggie said with a wide smile.

"Reggie of Manehattan…" Rarity said to herself ponderingly. "I'll be sure to remember that. How do you both know Aurora?"

"I wouldn't be surprised to hear she didn't tell you about her trip to Manehattan." Vinyl said, smiling mischievously.

"That's right, I didn't." Aurora said flatly. "Nopony other than those involved knows the details of that nightmare."

"It wasn't all bad. I'd never had so much fun before you showed up!" Reggie said appreciatively.

"Yea, those were good times…" Vinyl said supportively.

"You're the only ponies who would think any of it was fun." Aurora replied irritably.

"I thought it was fun too!" Pinkie said, popping up in between Reggie and Vinyl suddenly.

"Well then it's good to know I was right. You're all insane." Aurora said, trying to hide the smile that had formed on her face.

"You love us." Vinyl said with a grin.

"Don't try to deny it." Reggie added.

"I liked the explosion!" Pinkie shared enthusiastically.

"Which one?" Reggie arched his eyebrow curiously at the pink pony.

"The big one or the funny one?" Vinyl asked.

"I thought they were both funny." Pinkie giggled as they all reminisced.

"Aurora, what in Equestria are they referring to?" Rarity asked, her eyes wide with shock.

"Just ignore them. They feed off of attention." Aurora remarked sardonically.

"Attention sounds spicy." Pinkie said thoughtfully. "I _love_ spicy food!"

"I see your point." Rarity said, looking at Aurora knowingly.

The group settled down a bit and made their way away from the train station, continuing to exchange words along their way. They had just about made it back to Sugarcube Corner when Vinyl Scratch changed the subject.

"So Pinkie, where are we staying?" The white mare asked curiously. "Could you point us in the direction of a motel or something?"

"I checked you guys in at the Ponyville Inn this morning." Pinkie said. "You're in room twelve!"

"Really? Uh, thanks Pinkie, I guess." Vinyl was visibly deterred. "How much do we owe you?"

"Nothing you silly filly! The owner owed me for an overdue bakery order, so I just called it even!" Pinkie said, enthusiastically bobbing her head up and down.

"Must have been _some_ cupcakes."

"He ordered a lot…" Pinkie said questioningly, shifting her gaze into empty space. "He gets lonely at night."

"So do you have the key, or"—

"Check your pocket, Reggie!" Pinkie replied happily.

"M-My…_pocket?_" Reggie asked in confusion.

Pinkie Pie leaned forward and stuck her hoof _inside_ Reggie, digging through a mysteriously formed flap in his coat. She pulled out a set of keys branded with the number 'twelve' and tossed them to Vinyl, who unwillingly caught them. Reggie hurriedly brushed his hooves over the spot Pinkie had just removed the keys from and found no openings, intrusions, or remains of the mysterious pouch.

"I…I feel…_unclean._" Reggie said with wide eyes, clearly disturbed at the incident.

"You can shower at the motel, Reggie." Vinyl said with genuine concern for the violated unicorn. "Thanks Pinkie. I guess we'll go get set up in the room now."

"Okie Dokie Lokie! Just be sure find one of us once you're done so we can show you around town!" Pinkie Pie said, gesturing towards Aurora and herself.

"Sounds good. See ya soon!" With that, the two unicorns made their way towards the Ponyville Inn, leaving Aurora with Pinkie and Rarity.

"I can't believe that they're here." Aurora was awestruck. She turned to Pinkie with a look of concern. "I didn't even think to ask about them. I hope you didn't go out of your way to get them here."

"I just sent a letter through a friend telling Vinyl you were here. She made the choice to come down, so it was no trouble!" Pinkie said with a dismissive smile. "Besides, I figured you could use a little cheering up."

"Cheering up?" Aurora asked tersely. "I never asked for anything of the sort."

"Friends don't wait to be asked, Rory. They just _bounce_ into action." Pinkie Pie said, jumping up to emphasize her point.

"While I do agree with that Pinkie, dear, what sort of help do you believe Aurora is in need of?" Rarity interjected, not following the conversation.

"None. I'm fine, actually." Aurora said with a hint of disdain for the bright pink pony.

"No you're not!" Pinkie yelled, the smile she wore disappearing into an uncharacteristic frown. "You're depressed and you haven't been yourself. You were like this when I first saw you come into Ponyville with Fluttershy and Twilight!"

"You have no idea what the hell you're talking about, Pinkie." Aurora said harshly.

"See, right there! You'd never talk to me like that, Rory!" Pinkie said, sounding slightly hurt.

"Ladies, Please! Settle down and let us handle this like adults." Rarity said stepping in between the two pink ponies. "Pinkie dear, why don't you go back to work and calm down for a spell. I'll speak to Aurora myself and see if I can't assist her with her…problem."

"…fine." Pinkie said hesitantly, looking over to Aurora. "Just make sure you _don't_ let her change the subject."

Pinkie began stepping backwards towards the front door of Sugarcube Corner, her stunningly bright teal eyes fixated on the pink pony before her. Her eyes were narrowed suspiciously, and her countenance was fixed in a 'no nonsense' position that looked ominous. Frankly, it made Rarity very nervous. Pinkie Pie made one final gesture with her hoof, pointing first at her own eyes, and then towards Aurora before heading inside.

The elegant white mare turned away from the disturbing, and rather threatening sight of the bright pink pony, and looked upon Aurora. The mare looked rather flustered, still wearing her anger on her brow. This was disconcerting, which was what Rarity used as a starting point.

"I must say, you're much prettier when you aren't scowling like that. Would a smile be out of the question?"

Aurora didn't smile, but her features noticeably softened. She let out a deep sigh and looked at the ground for a moment before turning her gaze on the unicorn.

"Not to be rude, but what do you want from me?" Aurora asked. "I don't have anything to say."

"Who's asking you say a word? Certainly not moi." Rarity said, practically scoffing at the idea. "I just want to walk with a good friend and see how she's been doing at another dear friend's home. How _is_ Sweet Apple Acres treating you?"

"They've been nothing but gracious and kind." Aurora answered honestly, unwinding slightly. "I haven't met anypony as kind as that family in quite a while. In fact, you're all unwaveringly magnificent. It makes a pony wonder…"

"Oh? About what?" Rarity asked with surplus curiosity.

"Well… It's just that I've been to many different places." Aurora started hesitantly. "I've never run into a town as wholesome and innocent as this one."

"Ponyville _is_ very rustic. We're rather separated from the hustle and bustle of the metropolis." Rarity mused in agreement. "The city life doesn't appeal to you I suppose?"

"No, not at all. Thundervolt's always been better with dealing with other ponies. He changes his face around strangers easily. I prefer solitude. Or at the very least ponies that aren't _awful_."

"You haven't had very good experiences with strangers, I understand." Rarity said uncomfortably, remembering the pink pony's situation.

"Nova was a psychopath yes, but that's not what I'm referring to. I'm talking more about the ponies wandering the streets in broad daylight." Aurora replied darkly. "He may have been a monster, but he was right about one thing; Ponies can be very evil creatures."

"Whatever do you mean?" Rarity asked with confusion.

"I don't blame you for not understanding. You haven't seen the things we have. A lot of stuff happens behind closed doors that you wouldn't believe." Aurora said reflectively. "That's why I don't understand how he does it."

"How who does what?" Rarity asked, losing track of Aurora's train of thought.

"Thundervolt has been everywhere I have, _lived_ it all right beside me. After all of the horror and the heartbreak, he still manages to see the best in everypony." Aurora focused her sad neon green eyes on Rarity's concerned expression. "That's just something I can't do as easily. There were a precious few exceptions to that rule before I met all of you."

"And I'm guessing two of those 'exceptions' just got off the train from Manehattan?" Rarity asked, putting the pieces together.

"Sans one, yes." Aurora said cryptically, turning away.

"Well then, that's the root of your problem." Rarity said resolutely.

"Wait, what are you"—

"It's now abundantly clear that being the cold protector you aim to be has cost you a close personal relationship with somepony down the line, and now that you're not in the line of fire you're unsure of what course of action to take." Rarity said confidently.

"But"—

"But you left them behind in a way that you regret and aren't sure of whether or not you should try to fix your mistake, if they'll even speak to you again."

"Rarity, I"—

"Well judging by how well received you were in the eyes of your other friends, I'm sure that with enough persuasion _he_ or _she_ could be brought around." Rarity said, finishing her discourse with an afterthought. "But that's just me spouting nonsense. This couldn't _possibly_ apply to you, could it?"

Aurora just stared at the unicorn, speechless. Rarity's account resonated closely to the pink pony, and she was now unsure of how to proceed. She decided to put on her best acting shoes and wriggle her way out of the conversation.

"Not in the slightest. That situation sounds completely ludicrous and doesn't sound familiar at all." Aurora said, internally proud of herself for her performance.

"My apologies. I would have sworn on my life that I was correct." Rarity said sounding genuinely sorry. She glanced at Aurora coyly and continued. "I won't press any further. If I may add however, you were absolutely right."

"Right about what?"

"Thundervolt is a much better actor than you are." Rarity said, smiling humorously to herself.

Aurora's cheeks reddened as she realized Rarity had seen right through her ruse. The pink pony let out a defeated sigh and locked herself up, thinking of anything she could do to get out of the present situation. She mulled the notion over in her head for a moment before verbalizing.

"If you aren't busy, you should come with me to visit Twilight. I've been meaning to check in with her."

"Oh, that does sound like a lovely little detour." Rarity said happily. "I don't see why not. Shall we?"

"Sure." Aurora said, happy to be doing anything else.

The two ponies turned away from Sugarcube Corner and began the trot towards the Ponyville Library. Rarity stopped pressing for the time being, satisfied that she had planted the seeds of thought in the pink pony's head. She'd find a way to get her talk soon, but now was the time to leave it alone. Visiting Twilight would be a suitable distraction to make her forget until Rarity could reap what she had sowed.

"I do hope Twilight isn't in the middle of something important."

* * *

"I swear, if you two don't stop arguing, I'm going to have to ask you to leave!"

"But we're having an academic discussion about the merit of one of _your_ books!"

"Discussion my flank! You're just bashing the greatest book series ever made!"

Twilight let out a deep sigh as she once again became a part of Rainbow Dash and Thundervolt's argument. The lavender unicorn had been listening to each side of the argument, not by choice, as Rainbow Dash was involuntarily loud. Bless her heart. Thundervolt was calm and collected, and continued to harass the cyan pegasus, the combination of which made the mare boil with rage.

All in all, the spectacle of their confrontation was growing stale, and Twilight just wanted some peace. Fluttershy couldn't get through to either of them, so she had long given up trying and moved to an empty corner of the library to read. She had the right idea. Spike had a similar place outside the argument; however he still hadn't given up on inserting his take.

"You guys may not be actual siblings, but you sure argue like you are." The baby dragon said.

"That's because they're both stubborn and thick-headed." Fluttershy said calmly. She looked up from her book for a moment to clarify. "_Especially_ when it comes to each other's opinions."

Thundervolt's white face turned red at the comment, and he rubbed the back of his deep blue mane guiltily, mixing it with his yellow streaks. His golden eyes had lit up with silent acknowledgment. Rainbow Dash merely rolled her eyes with disdain, flipping her mane from her face as she shrugged off her friends comment.

"Look, all I'm saying is that the character is pretty arrogant and full of herself." Thundervolt said.

"You're just jealous that she's infinitely cooler than you!" Rainbow Dash responded defensively. "Daring Do's adventures are _legendary_!"

"Legendary to the few ponies that actually read about her. I just think they could've been written better."

"Those stories are flawless! You just can't understand literature of such _quality_." Rainbow Dash said, turning her nose up at the white pegasus. "Isn't that right, Twilight?"

"They have an adventurous charm to them." Twilight said, dodging the question. "Does it really matter though? You can have differing opinions without making it difficult to hear myself think…"

"She's right, Rainbow Dash. Sorry Twilight, we'll let you get back to…what is it that you're doing over there?" Thundervolt asked curiously.

"She's doing the same thing she's been doing since you guys got back." Spike spoke up, indifference evident in his voice. "She's been trying to figure out what that shot Aurora gave her did. In _great_ detail."

"Well I can't just sit around and wait to see what happens now, can I?" Twilight said dismissively, her horn aglow as she wrote notes in a small book.

"To be honest, that's I did." Thundervolt spoke up. "Have you noticed any of the effects yet?"

"Other than inheriting your tingly feeling, nothing. How long did it take for them to show up in your case?" Twilight asked nervously.

"They didn't take long if I remember correctly. You were accelerated through the process though, so it could be delayed." Thundervolt said with concern. "If you start to _see_ noises, that would be your cue to get home and wait to get used to the heightened perception."

"That's not very comforting, but alright… I guess I could put the notes down for a bit." Twilight reluctantly lowered her quill and rested in on the table she worked at.

She turned her lavender eyes on Rainbow Dash and smiled lovingly. The cyan mare flew from across the room to her side and nuzzled her neck affectionately before returning the smile.

"That's the spirit, Twilight! The more you think about it, the more you'll worry. Just relax!" Rainbow Dash said calmly.

The lavender mare attempted to come down from her anxious behavior before responding. "Well if I'm supposed to keep my focus elsewhere, maybe we should all go do something."

"If it means getting out of chores, I'm in!" Spike said enthusiastically as he descended the library's stairs.

***Knock Knock***

Everypony turned towards the library door at the sound of oak wood being pounded upon. Twilight took the initiative and moved to greet whoever was at the door. The lavender mare opened the library up and found two ponies on her front porch.

"Rarity, Aurora! How are you two?" Twilight asked excitedly, happy to see her friends.

"We're both doing well, Twilight. May we come in?" Rarity asked politely.

"Of course. We were just thinking of what to do, actually. You're more than welcome to join us once we make a decision." Twilight replied.

"Actually, I think Aurora here has something we could all do. Don't you?" Rarity turned towards the petite pink pony.

"Oh, well I suppose. Pinkie Pie contacted some…old friends of mine. They arrived in town today, and they should be settling in as we speak." Aurora said uncomfortably. "We could go meet them…maybe."

"Friends?" Thundervolt asked with audible concern. "What _friends_ are we referring to?"

"I told you. Friends." Aurora replied flatly.

"In any case, I'm sure they'd both like to meet you all." Rarity said, her eyes moving in between the two ponies. "Would that be to everypony's liking?"

"That sounds like a wonderful idea, my dear sweet Rarity." Spike said, leaning far forward with an enraptured smile on his face.

"Ignoring lover boy over here, that sounds like fun. I wanna know who the barrel of sunshine made nice with." Rainbow Dash said jokingly, earning a cross look from Aurora.

"I hope th-that they're friendly." Fluttershy said nervously as she joined the gathering, leaving her book behind.

"Aurora, can I talk to you?" Thundervolt said sternly. "_Alone?_"

The pink pony nodded guiltily, and the two ponies turned to walk out of the room. Everypony else merely looked at them with concern. Thundervolt and Aurora were quickly out of sight, and out of earshot, leaving them to speak privately.

"Would you mind telling me what's going on?" Thundervolt asked impatiently.

"You remember the white unicorn I talked about? The one you spoke to momentarily?" Aurora asked calmly.

"She's in town? That explains why you look so tense." Thundervolt said chidingly. "It looks like your little adventure is finally catching up to you."

"You say that like she's going to kill somepony." Aurora said accusingly.

"It's not her I'm worried about, Aurora." Thundervolt's gaze hardened. "Ever since Manehattan, you've been hard to deal with and you won't tell me what happened. Maybe since the cast of mystery theater is gathered in town, _now_ would be the time?"

"Everypony needs to stop asking and leave it alone." Aurora said tersely. "Applejack and Rarity have been taking turns trying to get me to talk, then Pinkie Pie invites Vinyl here without telling me, and now you're jumping on the bandwagon."

"Need I remind you that I'm the founder of that bandwagon?" Thundervolt replied. "I've been asking you about this consistently."

"It doesn't matter. It's nopony's business but my own."

"I disagree."

"Well that doesn't _fucking_ matter now does it!?" Aurora yelled, her neon green eyes boring into the white pegasus.

Thundervolt stood his ground, but a look of surprise had made its way onto his face. Aurora's outburst had caught him totally off guard, and he wasn't quite sure how to respond. The pink pony's hardened stare quickly faded as she began to realize what she had just said.

"Thundervolt, I'm sorry." Aurora said, retreating into herself slightly.

"I'm pretty sure my feelings will make a full recovery. Instead of an apology, how about you help me understand what's going on?" Thundervolt pleaded, his golden eyes beseeching the pink pony.

Aurora looked guiltily towards Thundervolt, though it was the last thing she wanted to do. His eyes penetrated her like no pony else's ever did. Maybe it was the fact that they'd known each other for years, or maybe it was the mutual pain they shared. Either way, the petite pink pony was trapped where she stood. She let out a deep sigh.

"You know, the funny thing about it is that it's such a trivial issue." Aurora said, chuckling sadly to herself. "We've been through some deep crap together Thundervolt, but for some reason…"

"Can you elaborate?"

"I just can't believe after all the blood and sweat, it's a domestic dispute that ends up bogging me down." Aurora said, furrowing her brow in annoyance.

"You're kidding." Thundervolt deadpanned, causing Aurora to arch her eyebrow angrily at the pegasus. "Sorry, it's just that I didn't expect something like _that_."

"What _did_ you expect?" Aurora asked flatly.

"Honestly? Something a little less…_emotional._" Thundervolt said contemplatively. "I guess I should have seen that coming."

"Why would you have? We were a little busy, remember?" Aurora said, rolling her eyes at the embarrassment replaying in her mind.

"I dropped the ball on that one…"

"You dropped the ball off of a sheer cliff face after lighting it on fire." Aurora said without emotion. "Though if you hadn't, I'd have never sought her out again."

"_Her_?" Thundervolt asked, surprised yet again. "Since when do you swing that way?"

"If you're implying I'm swinging in any direction other than where my heart takes me, you're sorely mistaken." Aurora said with a slight frown on her face.

"So the hardened warrior believes that 'Love is Love', no matter the gender." Thundervolt said almost proudly. "You keep on surprising me."

"I only surprise you because you fail to realize how amazing I really am." Aurora said rather over-confidently.

"Your coat is turning cyan." Thundervolt replied in jest.

"There's overconfidence, and then there's telling the truth." Aurora grinned as her neon green eyes shifted towards the white pegasus.

"Maybe you're just Rainbow Dash in a convincing Aurora costume."

"Would I really go through all that trouble?"

"Hmmm, no. You're right." Thundervolt said, grinning madly at the petite pink pony. "Besides, you're too short to be accurately portrayed by anypony over the age of fourteen."

***Smack***

"Ow!"

"What did I tell you about that?" Aurora asked calmly, blowing dust off of her recently used hoof.

"*Sigh* That every 'short' joke I make earns me one swift kick in the flank." Thundervolt said, rolling his golden eyes.

"That's damn right they do." Aurora said energetically.

"Hey, are two done in here or what!?" Thundervolt and Aurora turned to see Rainbow Dash fly into the room abruptly. "We need you out here right now!"

"Why, what's going on?" Aurora asked.

"The Princess just sent a letter to Twilight!" Rainbow Dash said. "We have to get everypony together right now!"

"Ok, so what do you need us for?" Thundervolt asked skeptically.

"Aurora is going to go get Pinkie Pie from Sugarcube Corner, and _you're_ going to get Aurora's friends from the Ponyville Inn, Room number twelve." Rainbow Dash said snappily.

"And what do you plan on doing?"

"_I'm_ going to fly all the way over to Sweet Apple Acres and get Applejack here pronto! Unless either of you would like to _quadruple_ the distance of your trips." Rainbow Dash replied incredulously.

"No thank you."

"I'm good."

"That's what I thought. I'll see you in a flash!" Rainbow Dash took off in the direction she came from, leaving a rainbow trail in her wake.

"Looks like we've got work to do." Thundervolt said idly.

"More like errands. See you back here soon." Aurora said dismissively, making her way towards the library's exit.

"Wait, Aurora?" Thundervolt stopped her, prompting the pink pony to turn around curiously. "You'll think about what I said, right?"

Aurora stayed silent as she looked into Thundervolt's golden eyes with conflicted emotions. She mulled over a few replies in her head, but ultimately swallowed her words.

"I'll be back with Pinkie Pie momentarily."

The pink pony walked out the door without another word, leaving Thundervolt to his task. The pegasus wore a small frown, but shook off the concern. He had his own errand to worry about at the moment, and he wasn't going to let her off that easy. Thundervolt flapped his wings, and flew out of the library with haste towards the Ponyville Inn. He prepared himself to finally meet Aurora's friends face to face, and took to the sky.

* * *

_**Thanks for reading everybody! Next update is in the works, so it shouldn't be too long a wait. Also, for the few people that may have noticed, this story is now rated T because the coarse language that would have prompted an M rarely shows up.**_


	4. Familiar Faces

_**Howdy everybody, I hope you're enjoying the story so far! Leave your comments and questions in the box below for me to sort through, and have a pleasant read!**_

Chapter 4: Familiar Faces

Surrounded by four walls and alone at last, Vinyl Scratch finally had a moment to relax. She looked around her temporary abode and found it to be an interesting sight. Blue, pastel walls framed with faux white molding, accented by white curtains covering the windows gave 'room number twelve' a calming atmosphere. Despite the wholesome surface she viewed now however, Vinyl saw the emptiness of the room and began to feel the impersonal vibe it gave off.

Two beds a few feet from each other, a lone dresser with a lamp on top, a small bookshelf with donated literature lining its rows, a miniature refrigerator no doubt stocked with overpriced snacks and drinks, and a door leading to the bathroom. The door was locked, the light was on, and the punctuated sound of splashing set to running water filled the room with muffled sound that was almost hypnotic.

Reggie was taking a shower to remedy his less than pleasant odor that had been present since he'd gotten out of bed the previous night. Vinyl had to admit that for a pony with such a filthy sense of humor, he sure liked to keep clean. She laughed to herself when she realized that is was usually her fault he was dirty all the time. Vinyl had lost count of the number of times she'd dragged that pony into a mess that wasn't his.

Reggie would always complain and say he never asked for it, which was entirely true. Another truth was that each time she needed help, Reggie was right there when no one else was. That mantle used to be someone else's, but she's had enough to deal with lately without a trouble-making best friend causing added frustration.

It really was amazing how close those two ponies were. Vinyl had known Octavia for years, and was her best friend, despite all the problems Vinyl had caused for the mare. But that's friendship. If they don't want to kill you sometimes, it means they don't love you enough. Octavia's relationship with Aurora though was something else entirely.

Octavia always cleaned up Vinyl's messes, because she was the responsible one. She was strong, well kept, and knew how to handle herself flawlessly. According to her, that was thanks to the little pink pony she met as a filly. Aurora was the one to clean up _her _messes. The two were practically co-dependent on each other as kids, but Aurora was definitely the lead in their relationship.

_That's why she took it so hard when she left..._

The water in the bathroom cut off suddenly, filling the room with silence. Vinyl snapped out of her thoughts and looked over to the door. It opened, and out stepped Reggie, sopping wet and sans towel. Vinyl watched the unicorn as he shook himself off, sending small beads of water flying off himself and into the light.

The mare gazed at his glistening khaki coat, noting its bright sheen along his muscles. His shoulders and back were lean but strong, and his legs were exceptionally toned for a supposed shut-in. Reggie was actually very fit despite his sedentary habits. The khaki stallion flipped his black and grey mane from his face and looked over, fixing his deep magenta eyes on the white mare.

"Try all you want, I won't burst into flames with all this water on me." Reggie said with a cheeky smile.

"Huh?" Vinyl turned red as she realized she'd been staring. She stumbled over her words as she formulated a response. "Oh, sorry. I was just..."

"Just...trying to burn a hole through me?" Reggie asked obliviously.

"I just haven't seen you that clean before." Vinyl said, finally composing herself. "You're usually fresh out of bed or covered in grease."

"Yup, that's the price I pay for my tireless work ethic. Dirty and tired all the time."

"Ha, thanks. Your ridiculous jokes always brighten up my day, Reg." Vinyl said, wearing a small smile.

"Would it be alright to ask why your day needs brightening?" Reggie asked with some concern.

"I guess."

"Why does your day need brightening, Scratchie?" Reggie asked, smiling at the nickname Vinyl hated with a passion. "Something on your mind?"

"This whole thing with Aurora and Octavia..." Vinyl paused, gathering her thoughts. "She's been half the pony she was ever since Aurora came back into her life. She's been angry, and hurt, and I can't do a thing to help her."

"What do you mean?"

"It's just that Aurora feels too guilty for leaving to do anything, and Octavia is too mad at her to move past it. I want them to reconcile, but I'm not sure what to do." Vinyl said, her head sinking slightly.

"Well, I don't know either of them as well as you do, but it doesn't sound like this is something that can be solved so easily." Reggie said thoughtfully. "Octavia is the stubborn one, right?"

"They _both_ are. In this case though, I'd say she holds that title." Vinyl replied flatly.

"Well if that's the case, maybe you should try getting the cooperative one to fix this. Aurora sounded pretty upset. She'd probably reconcile with Octavia herself if you push her in the right direction."

"That isn't a bad idea actually. Maybe I could get some of friends to help motivate her. I know Pinkie would wanna help." Vinyl replied.

"Couldn't hurt."

***Knock Knock***

"Weird timing. That's probably her now. She said she'd be coming by."

Unlike Vinyl who was lying lazily on the motel bed, Reggie was already standing. He took the initiative and walked over to the door to see who was there. By sheer force of habit, he took a look through the peephole and visibly recoiled with eagerness.

"There's no way!" Reggie said doubtfully. He quickly opened the door, revealing a white pegasus with a deep blue mane and golden eyes standing there attentively. "Son of a bitch, it is you!"

"Reggie!? What in the world!?" Thundervolt responded in shock.

Both ponies took a second to process the scene before reacting accordingly. The two collided in a magnificent display of brotherly love, each wrapping one hoof around the others shoulder, bumping hooves using the other. The coordinated embrace faded and Vinyl used the opening to speak up.

"Reggie, I'm going to wager that you know this colt."

"Oh I know him alright! Every time Thundervolt comes by, I wave goodbye to all my pent up boredom!" Reggie said excitedly.

"That's because you're the only pony I know that enjoys watching ponies fight." Thundervolt said with a reminiscent smile.

"What Keyes and I do is fighting. What _you_ do is send ponies packing."

"What can I say? I've spent the better part of a decade getting good at it." Thundervolt said dismissively. "How _is_ Limey doing?"

"He got promoted, actually."

"No kidding?"

"Yeah, he got Pace's old title." Reggie said, a hint of melancholy on his words.

"So now he's _Sargent_ Limey?" Thundervolt asked, diffusing the mood into the air.

"Sargent Keyes Limestone, 1st Division of the Manehattan Police Department. He's spearheading the newly formed Criminal Activity Surveillance group. They just call it CAS." Reggie said proudly.

"I guess it's been longer than I remember." Thundervolt said, now sounding sad himself.

"Well you're here now, so time to make memories!" Reggie said enthusiastically. He suddenly frowned and looked at the pegasus thoughtfully. "Actually, why are you here? I was too excited to question the improbability of this encounter."

"Reggie, he knows Aurora." Vinyl spoke up, turning her eyes towards the pegasus. "Probably way better than either of us."

"You know that bundle of happy thoughts and violence?" Reggie asked in surprise.

"Remember that friend I wanted you to help out?" Thundervolt said with a grin.

"Oh man, like _she _needed any help!" Reggie laughed as he made the connection.

"She's good, not invincible." Thundervolt stated, moving his gaze towards Vinyl. "I'm here to escort you over to Twilight's. She's received word from her mentor about some important things, and I guess you're allowed into the war room on this one."

"Well that was nice of everyone. What conspiracy are we being dragged into this time?" Reggie asked almost seriously.

"The one that forced Aurora to leave you all behind, actually." Thundervolt said solemnly.

Vinyl and Reggie shot each other looks of concern. The white pegasus before them turned to leave, calling for the two unicorns to follow. They wordlessly exited the room and locked it before falling in behind their escort.

* * *

"Hey, can we come in? Whoops, already inside." Thundervolt said as he walked into the library, the two unicorns in tow behind him.

"You two are actually _really_ similar. I'm kinda creeped out." Vinyl commented, looking over to Reggie.

"I get to be the handsome one!" Reggie said enthusiastically.

"That's fine, I'm up for a game of pretend." Thundervolt retorted with a smug grin.

"Awww." Reggie said with mock sadness.

The three ponies walked towards the center of the library's lobby, looking around for the group that had previously been assembled there. Nopony seemed to be around any longer; however an audible bouncing sound could be heard drawing closer. No sooner had they begun to hear it, Pinkie Pie came bounding around the corner with an excited look on her face.

She hopped over to the group of ponies and continued hopping in place once she reached them. Pinkie Pie reached her hoof out, and moved Thundervolt to the side without effort. The white pegasus wasn't sure how to respond to the forced relocation, and so he turned to watch the pink pony work her magic.

Pinkie Pie produced a party blower from thin air, put in her mouth, and blew as loud as she could, shaking the very foundations of the building. She flung her hooves into the air, and a storm of confetti erupted onto Vinyl and Reggie. Both ponies said nothing, but wore genuine looks of appreciation. It was Vinyl that spoke up for the group.

"I'm guessing your budget was low this time around?"

"No, Silly! Twilight just said we don't have time for a _real_ welcoming party, so I decided to go for really loud _confetti_!" Pinkie said happily.

"Much appreciated. You know how much I love confetti." Reggie said with a grin.

"So where is everypony Pinkie Pie?" Thundervolt asked, getting back on track. "Twilight said she had news."

"Everypony's in the main room! C'mon, let's go!" Pinkie said, hurriedly bouncing from the room.

Thundervolt, Vinyl, and Reggie followed her and found everypony gathered around in a semi-circle, ready for what looked like an official meeting with Twilight at the reins. The lavender pony was reading what looked to be an official document very carefully, with Spike to her side like a scribe. She tore her eyes from the page as they walked in, and greeted the newcomers accordingly.

"Hello, my name is Twilight Sparkle! Welcome to Ponyville, more specifically the Ponyville Library!"

"Even _more_ specifically, our home. Good to meet you, I'm Spike by the way." The baby dragon said, adding a small and polite bow.

"Hi, I'm Vinyl Scratch! This is Reggie." Vinyl said, gesturing towards the khaki unicorn.

"You have a baby dragon butler!?" Reggie asked enthusiastically, staring intently at the scaled creature before him.

"I'm not her butler! I'm Twilight's #1 Assistant!" Spike said, putting a fist to his chest proudly. "I help her maintain the library, I requisition supplies for her studies, and I correspond with Princess Celestia to deliver important messages to her!"

"No offense, but that _does_ sound kinda like a butler." Vinyl said offhandedly, looking at the dragon awkwardly.

"Nobody gives me any respect." Spike grumbled as he walked away with an irritated look on his face.

"Hey, you were the DJ at my brother Shining Armor's wedding, weren't you?" Twilight asked, a look of recognition forming on her face.

"The very same. Your friend Rarity remembered me for that too." Vinyl replied with a polite smile.

"Well of course. You played some of the best music I've heard in ages! I usually don't like the sounds of the club, but you made it work. And for a wedding no less!" Twilight praised the unicorn, causing her to scratch her mane modestly.

"Shucks, I just do my best to fit the music to the occasion. I learned that piece of advice from a friend."

"That sounds like something she'd try to impart." Aurora spoke up from across the room, barely turning her gaze towards the unicorn.

"Well you know her as well as I do. She likes to make a good impression."

"That she does, and she does it well."

"Who are we talking about?" Thundervolt asked, arching his eyebrow at Aurora suspiciously.

"Aurora is still thinking about my sister, _aren't you Rory?_" Pinkie teased, spinning her head around as she fixed her teal eyes on the petite pony.

"I never stopped." Aurora replied flatly, halting the hyperactive pony's jesting

"So Twilight, what's the big news?" Thundervolt asked, changing the subject. "The Princess has to have finished her deliberation, right?"

"I'll explain everything once everypony's here. We're just waiting on"—

"WHOA NELLY! LOOK OUT!"

Everypony looked up to see a tan earth pony flying in through the library's open window, being carried by an equally fast moving cyan pegasus. The two were moving extraordinarily fast, disturbing numerous bookshelves as they passed. Rainbow Dash flew down towards the floor and deposited her cargo directly next to Rarity, leaving Applejack in her care.

The western pony's Stetson hat had flown off in the flight and landed on the white unicorns head, frazzling her stylized purple mane. Applejack's green eyes were spinning, and she looked as though she was going to be sick. Rarity put her hoof around her in an attempt to steady the dizzy earth pony. Her blonde mane was wrought with tangles and knots, no doubt thanks to the high speed flight it had been through.

The cyan blur touched down next to Twilight, nodding towards her in a professional fashion. Forgoing the concern for Rainbow Dash's newest victim of severe turbulence, she addressed the crowd.

"Alright, it looks like everypony's here. Thank you all for taking the time to gather here. I know you all probably have better things to be doing."

"The only one of us doing _anything_ today was Applejack." Rainbow Dash cut in, sending an impatient look towards the jet-lagged pony. "That's why we took so long getting here."

"Ugh… Just 'cause _Ah_ got a job to do, don't mean y'all have to act so darn pushy!" Applejack replied, albeit with a bit of queasiness still lingering on her words.

"Well wouldn't it have made sense to tend to that side of the orchard _before _it got infested with fruit bats?"

"Ah don't recall hearin' any of that was _yer_ business Rainbow Dash." Applejack replied tersely. She looked over to Rarity and smiled appreciatively before removing her Stetson from her head and placing it atop her own. "An' besides, we could've just…Ah don't know, _walked_ here on our own four hooves?"

"Flying's faster. Enough said." Rainbow Dash said, merely shrugging at the irritated earth pony. "Go on Twi, tell 'em the news!"

The lavender unicorn merely rolled her eyes at the confrontation before continuing. "Anyway, I've received word from Princess Celestia in regards to recent events."

"What did she say?" Aurora asked. Twilight unfurled the scroll she was levitating off to the side and began to read.

_To my most faithful student, Twilight, _

_It is with my deepest regrets that I write you about matters so grave and displeasing. In light of recent events, it is more than apparent that the situation we find ourselves in must be put right before it can blossom into something more hurtful than helpful. It is not wise to discuss sensitive issues through mail, which is why I ask that you, the rest of the Elements, and your new associates make haste to Canterlot. Princess Luna and I would like to extend our apologies to you all, and discuss the future of a certain wing of the castle. _

_Sincerely, Princess Celestia_

Twilight looked up once she was finished to gauge the reactions of everypony in the room. Thundervolt and Aurora looked completely stoic. They'd most likely been expecting something along the lines of a vague request. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash seemed concerned, but didn't show any signs of panic. As for the rest of the ponies present, they seemed a bit lost.

"Does anypony have any questions?" Twilight asked, looking around the room uneasily.

"Uh yeah, what's going on here?" Vinyl Scratch asked uncomfortably, feeling as though she was intruding.

"That problem I mentioned, Vinyl?" Aurora said, walking over towards her concerned ruby red eyes. "It was a very bad stallion working within the inner reaches of the Royal Castle in Canterlot. Thundervolt and I? We were basically kidnapped by him as kids, and we worked for him for years. Just recently, we solved the problem."

"How'd you manage that?" Reggie asked with concern.

"We killed him." Thundervolt interjected coldly. Silence spread throughout the room as the serious theme weighed upon those present for the discussion.

"Point being, it sounds like the Princesses are running clean-up. They're most likely at their wits end trying to sort through all of Nova's old work, trying to figure out what they could use and what should be burned out of shame." Aurora said, advancing the topic.

"That makes sense, I suppose." Twilight said, mulling it over in her head for a second. "I guess that means we should be heading out to Canterlot as soon as possible then."

"We don't want to keep you guys from getting this done, so if you need to go, Reggie and I will stay in town for a bit." Vinyl said. "I'm sure whatever they want won't take that long."

"Well, you can say I'm being presumptuous, but I was hoping you two would join us." Aurora said uneasily. "Something tells me we'll need all the ponies we can get to attest to our innocence in the matter."

"Princess Celestia didn't say anything about accusing you two of anything in her letter; where did that come from?" Twilight sounded offended.

"She didn't say anything about _not_ blaming us for anything though." Aurora replied with an edge of paranoia. "_Associates…_I mean, really?"

"What I think she's trying to say is that we aren't totally on board with the 'trust royalty' initiative." Thundervolt said seriously. "We're just not keen on what they were letting go on. I'm sure that they want to make amends for that though. _Right, Aurora_?"

"Right…The offer still stands. I'd hate to have you two come into town and be left without anything to do." Aurora said, looking towards Vinyl and Reggie.

"So we just got off a day long train ride, and you're asking us to go with you on another day-long train ride?" Reggie asked, disappointment evident in his voice.

"Basically, yes. I know it isn't ideal, but I wouldn't feel right leaving you two here."

"Especially considering we all know exactly what they'd use that motel room for." Rarity whispered quietly to Applejack, who couldn't help but stifle a laugh.

"If you insist, we'll stay right beside you." Vinyl said with an edge to her words. She looked directly at Rarity and narrowed her eyes. "I'd like to spend some time with all your new friends, especially the unicorn that didn't get the memo about my famously _excellent_ hearing."

"Rarity, is there something you'd like to _share_ with the class?" Rainbow Dash said with a mocking laugh.

"Oh no, nothing at all! You all must be mistaken, I, uh…help me out, Applejack." Rarity said, turning red as she stumbled around her retort.

"Don't you look at me like that. You made yer bed, now sleep in it!" The tan earth pony said, chuckling to herself.

"Don't worry; I'm not one to hold a grudge." Vinyl said to the mare, visibly calming her down. "But I do insist on repaying the favor…_eventually._"

The cryptic comment sent Rarity spiraling into a world of paranoid imagination, leaving the dramatic unicorn to sit and wonder what Vinyl could mean by that. With the shenanigans concluded, it was back to business.

"So I'll send the Princess a reply and let her know that we're all set to arrive shortly. I'll make our travel arrangements and let you all know when we're heading out. Just be ready to leave soon. I don't think we'll be waiting long." Twilight said, looking around the room to acknowledge everypony's nods of acceptance.

"Could we get an estimate?" Thundervolt said, sending a suspicious glance towards Aurora. "Just want to be sure we're ready on time."

"Well, Train Tickets usually take some advance notice, but with the Princess's help I'm sure we'll be able to leave around six o'clock." Twilight said.

"If it takes any of you more than seven hours to get ready, we're leaving you behind." Rainbow Dash said semi-seriously.

"That means you, Reggie." Vinyl said, nudging him in the shoulder.

"Please, when have I ever missed an important deadline?" The khaki stallion asked, sounding rather proud of himself.

Thundervolt laughed audibly at his statement, causing Vinyl Scratch to chuckle to herself as well. Aurora smiled and nodded to Thundervolt, who nodded back. The two moved towards the library's exit and the white pegasus turned to rest of the ponies in the room.

"Aurora and I have a quick errand to take care of, so we'll meet you all back here at five or so." Thundervolt said. He looked over towards Fluttershy and smiled, adding a quick wink before exiting.

"See you all soon." Aurora said briefly as she turned to follow Thundervolt out the door. The two ponies took a few steps away from the library before continuing their own conversation. "So, are we on the same page here?"

"Pretty much. I don't know how much I really trust the royalty either at this point." Thundervolt said thoughtfully. "I know you said Princess Luna seemed alright, but I don't think we should be taking any chances."

"Agreed." Aurora responded blankly. "So, what's this errand you have us running?"

"We're going to be taking mission inventory as per usual." Thundervolt said in a cold and calculating manner very familiar to the pink pony. "We'll be extending our olive branches with daggers in our bags, just in case."

Aurora looked at the pegasus with a warm and almost nostalgic smile. "I wouldn't have it any other way."


	5. Welcome to Manehattan

Chapter 5: Welcome to Manehattan

"Move please! Out of the way! I don't want to step on you or your children!"

"Watch it buddy!"

"I DON'T HAVE TIME TO WATCH ANYTHING!"

The scene unfolding in the streets of Ponyville was one that seemed like nothing more than a rude outburst to most. But to Reggie, this was a moment of chaos and panic, because once again he was running late. It wasn't his fault. Motel beds aren't supposed to be comfortable, and yet his promoted a four hour nap with ease. 5:56 had rolled around about five minutes ago, officially putting the khaki unicorn behind schedule.

Vinyl went ahead with the others to ensure that she wouldn't be late. She decided that now was the time to stop being his alarm clock, which meant that instead of getting out of bed in a groggy stupor, Reggie had to rush to the train station at the speed of an Equestria Games sprinter. The problem with this was that unlike such an athlete, Reggie lacked grace. It almost seemed as though he was going out of his way to run into ponies.

What he lacked in finesse however, he made up for in speed. He was closing in on the train station as he heard the telltale whistle of a departing locomotive. He bounded onto the platform, which by sheer luck was devoid of any passengers. The train had already started moving, and was rapidly pulling away. Reggie poured on the speed as he fought to make it towards one of the still open doors.

Each opening was quickly retreating from his reach however, and the effort was beginning to look hopeless. That's when he saw Vinyl at the back of the caboose with a smug smile on her face, and her goggles over her eyes.

"What part of getting here on time didn't you understand?" She said, not worried in the slightest.

"Tell them to stop!" Reggie yelled, quickly running out of breath.

"Too late for that. You've gotta jump!" Vinyl replied seriously, motioning for him to take a leap of faith.

"I'm going to regret this!"

The khaki unicorn mustered up a reserve of strength and galloped at full speed alongside the train. The platform was about to end, and the caboose was almost out of reach. With one last burst of energy, Reggie leapt diagonally off the platform and towards the back of the caboose, but his hoof missed the railing of the car and he started to fall towards the tracks.

Just as he began to brace for a painful impact, he felt his hoof catch on something. Vinyl had stuck out her hooves and grabbed him, saving him from hitting the ground hard. Reggie planted his hooves on the bottom of the railing, and pushed himself upwards as Vinyl pulled. He flew over the railing and the two ponies fell backwards into the train car, the door sliding shut behind them.

Reggie landed directly on top of Vinyl, knocking the wind from her body. Both ponies were dazed as the adrenaline from their exchange worked its way through their systems. It was about a minute before Reggie broke the silence.

"Well, I guess you saved my ass yet again."

"It uhh, definitely looks that way…" Vinyl said with slightly labored breathing. Her cheeks were turning a slight red, and her goggles hid the stunned look she had in her eyes.

"What's the balance on my tab?" Reggie asked with a small smile.

"Don't worry about it. If anything, I owe you more for dragging you into another situation." Vinyl said, slowly regaining her composure.

"I'll take your word for it then." Reggie said dismissively, keeping his eyes locked on Vinyl's face. "Something the matter? You look red."

"You're still on top of me, Reggie." Vinyl said flatly.

"Oh yeah." Reggie said, sounding genuinely surprised. He pushed himself off the white unicorn and helped her to her feet, watching as she dusted herself off. "So, did I miss anything?"

"Nope." Vinyl replied, removing her goggles to inspect them. She let them fall around her neck as she continued speaking. "The most exciting thing to happen was that death defying leap of yours."

"It shall be written that Reggie the Great made gravity his bitch." The khaki unicorn replied softly, with a hint of sarcasm.

"I think I may have been misquoted." Vinyl turned away and walked towards the connector to the next train car. "We should probably go join the others. They were in the middle of persuading Aurora to tell them about her trip to Manehattan."

"Oh, well I'm sure that's going well."

"They hadn't broken out into hysterics last _I_ checked." Vinyl said pensively, subconsciously quickening her pace.

The two ponies walked briskly towards the passenger car the group was located in, hearing their voices become clearer as the number of walls in between them decreased. They sounded oddly loud considering the noise the train was generating, which didn't bode well. They reached the door to their car and the two unicorns stepped inside.

The scene had clearly degraded from idle chit chat to full blown argument in the time it took Vinyl to scoop up Reggie. Aurora had her back pressed up to one of the windows, her pupils constricted and darting back and forth defensively. Thundervolt, Applejack, and Rarity were all focused intensely on her, while everypony else watched on with curiosity.

"I'll jump out the window! You can't make me stay!" Aurora cried frantically, pointing her hoof at the supposed aggressors.

"Either you tell us, or we go with Plan B!" Thundervolt said sternly, moving his gaze towards the lavender unicorn on his left.

"What? I just said if she didn't want to talk that I had a lecture about Modern Archaeology that could pass the time." Twilight said, sounding confused as to why she was being used as a threat.

"Would you really put all of us through that!? Have a heart woman!" Thundervolt said, furrowing his brow in annoyance at the small pink pony.

"Well, _somepony_ isn't ever going to find out what they discovered out in Saddle Arabia this year…" Twilight said, crossing her hooves with offense.

"Why must you try to make this a public affair?!" Aurora shouted. "I just want to forget it!"

"Rory, if you forget about it, then how will you remember the good times you had?" Pinkie Pie spoke up, wearing a concerned expression.

"What good times!?"

"Ouch, were we really _that_ bad?" Vinyl said, grinning at the defensive pony.

"Don't pull that Vinyl, you know why I don't want to remember." Aurora said, calming herself slightly as she noticed their arrival.

"That's true. It's also true that everyone here wants to help you get _past_ what happened. You have ten different pairs of ears ready to listen and give you some actual advice." Vinyl said, illustrating her point. "Besides, bottling up all those emotions can't be good for you."

"Yeah, that's probably what's making you so short. Suppressing your emotions has stunted your growth!" Reggie added, putting an irritated look on Aurora's face.

"She's right dear, and it can't be good for your complexion either." Rarity said, her deep blue eyes pleading for agreement.

"Ah don't know 'bout all that, but mah Granny Smith always says that talkin' out yer problems is the first step towards solvin' 'em." Applejack said resolutely.

"It sounds like everypony agrees, Aurora. What do you say?" Thundervolt asked, changing his tone to illustrate his support. "I'll even tell you what _I _was up to the whole time. I'm sure you're a little curious."

Aurora looked around desperately, hesitating to respond. She looked at the floor, mulling something over in her mind. "Well, I _did_ have some questions…"

"Then there yah go! Looks like we won't be needin' yah after all, Twi." Applejack said a little too enthusiastically.

"Sure. Fine." Twilight said with irritation.

"I told you Twilight, no respect." Spike said understandingly, earning a small smile from the lavender unicorn.

Everypony in the train car rearranged themselves to listen to Aurora's story. There were numerous bench seats in the car, four per row making room for two ponies each. Aurora sat down next to the window she previously attempted to leave from, and Vinyl Scratch took the seat next to her. Sitting across from them were Applejack and Rarity, the former taking the aisle seat.

On the other side of the car, Thundervolt sat in the aisle seat diagonally across from Vinyl and Aurora with Fluttershy close at his side. Across from the happy couple sat the _other_ happy couple, Twilight next to the window and Rainbow Dash in the aisle seat. Reggie and Spike opted for some male bonding in the seat behind Twilight and Rainbow Dash, looking over the top at the entire group. Pinkie Pie couldn't seem to sit still anyway, so she chose to float around between seats.

"Everypony comfortable? Because this is one hell of a story, and I don't want to hear any complaints." Aurora said a bit tersely for the situation.

"Well, I could use a pillow for my delicate flanks." Thundervolt replied cheekily.

"I myself could go for a cool beverage if you wouldn't mind." Rarity said, snickering to herself.

"Yeah, whose horn do you have to suck to get an alcoholic beverage around here?" Reggie asked with an odd smile.

"Oh no, you're staying sober. I'm not dragging your ass around again." Vinyl said. "This moron has a high tolerance, but no self-control. You'd think he'd have learned how to manage it by this point."

"I'm sorry I don't have pure alcohol running through my veins, Ms. Party Hardy." Reggie said, rolling his eyes.

"Are you all done? Seriously. Apparently now's the time to try and piss me off, so take your shots before I start taking _mine_." Aurora said angrily.

"I think we're done, Aurora. Go on, get started." Vinyl said.

"Hooray! Story time!" Pinkie Pie said enthusiastically, bouncing around the train car.

"Well, it all started about a year and half ago…"

* * *

**October 2****nd****, Year 1000 of Celestia's Reign**

**Neighagra Falls, 23.5 miles west of Manehattan**

Thick spruce trees closely packed together rushed by at break neck speed. The forest floor far below looked like an incomprehensible blend of flora two stories up as Aurora bounded from branch to branch. Her movements were fluid and graceful, each limb touching down exactly where it needed to, despite the rate at which she moved.

Every so often, she'd turn her focused neon green eyes up towards the top of the canopy, scanning the sky diligently for any signs of her pursuer. She didn't know where she was going, but she pressed on as if she was out of time. She knew she was headed east, and that she had to remain unseen. That was the main goal, and there was no way she'd let him see her. It wouldn't be hard in the dark.

Aurora heard the telltale sound of wings slicing through the air and took immediate action. The petite pink pony rebounded off a particularly springy branch and took to the air, missing the branch she would have hit next. She let herself keep falling until she was mere feet off the ground. Her rear hooves barely touched the floor before she rolled into a ball, distributing her weight smoothly across the vegetation and popping back up at full speed.

_You're not finding me, not yet._

Aurora could hear him screaming for her. His voice carried throughout the forest, swiftly becoming muffled as the distance between them grew. That naïve pegasus wouldn't stop trying to find her, even though it was a lost cause. She was nothing more than a ghost once she entered a natural environment. Thundervolt knew that. He'd see her again when she was ready.

The pink pony poured on the speed, dodging in between trees and continuing eastbound. Aurora kept going and going, never taking a break, never turning back. For over an hour and a half she kept that pace, her lungs burning and her muscles aching. She reached her breaking point as she crested a hill exiting the forest. Just before she thought of collapsing to the ground, her eyes darted towards a large source of light in the distance. About three miles east was what looked to be a huge city floating in a giant expanse of water.

_That's the Eastern Equestrian Sea. Which means that must be Manehattan._

Aurora looked towards the city very curiously, with a glint of hope in her eyes. Still out of breath, she inhaled deeply, filling her nose with the refreshing scent of saltwater. She hadn't realized she had been running for so long, and was surprised that she'd ran out of land before she'd run out of breath. She gazed towards the city for a minute longer before walking slowly down the hill until she found a decent place to rest for the night.

Nestling herself underneath a small ledge jutting out above the ground, Aurora prepared to get a little bit of rest. Going into a big city was probably the worst decision to make given the circumstances, which is why it was her exact plan of action. Thundervolt would never expect it from her, and if she was careful, she wouldn't draw attention. All she needed to do was lay low there for a while and sort things out. The petite pink pony closed her eyes and curled up, letting out a strained breath.

_Tomorrow should prove interesting._

* * *

"I still can't believe I couldn't catch up to you." Thundervolt said in a disappointed tone.

"Let it go already, would you?" Aurora replied, rolling her eyes.

"Ok, so you laid down for some beauty sleep. Then what happened?" Rarity asked curiously.

"Right, where was I…"

* * *

The sun was already low in the sky as Aurora made it to the city limits of Manehattan. She had slept for a long while, passing through the mid-morning sunlight and late afternoon heat without any bother. It was probably the combination of her previous exertion, and her skewed sleep schedule that had knocked her out so efficiently.

Regardless, she was in the city now, free to do whatever she wanted. The evening in a large city such as Manehattan is full of life, with something to see around every corner. It was truly a majestic sight to look at. Skyscrapers extended high into the air, overlooking a huge expanse of land and sea, with tens of thousands of ponies wandering the streets with their own agendas and a blend of sights and smells that would dizzy anypony that tried to take them all in.

In an effort to simplify the experience, Aurora decided to take a methodical approach to her first time in Manehattan. She looked around the area she had stumbled into and took note of some landmarks in case she needed to find her way back quickly. Satisfied with her ability to navigate, the petite pink pony began to walk and started working out a small list of tasks in her head.

_First off, I have to find a place to stay. I can probably find a cheap motel and dip into my reserves for a night until I find something more permanent. Next step would be getting something to eat. I'd rather not starve. After that…hmmm._

Aurora hit a wall, realizing her systematic approach was overcomplicating a fairly simple endeavor. She shook her head for a moment to clear her senses, and she looked up towards the sky. The towering buildings in her immediate area shared the view with the orange glow of the evening sky, creating a sensational image to behold. Aurora was soon lost to the world, just watching the sky with appreciation.

Without warning, she was shaken from her sightseeing as somepony obliviously walked right into her. She immediately snapped back to reality and set her gaze on the perpetrator, her neon green eyes digging into their soul. Aurora expected to be met with a fearful apology, or a confrontation. The bright pink pony with the frizzy pink mane standing in front of her had other ideas.

* * *

"Oooh! That's me everypony! I'm in the story now!" Pinkie Pie said excitedly, moving in between her companions with an unrivaled level of zeal.

"Pinkie, sit down. I'm trying to tell everypony how you ruined my life." Aurora said with an authorative tone.

"Okie dokie loki!" Pinkie Pie replied, finally planting her flank in the row behind Aurora and Vinyl.

* * *

"Hiya! I'm Pinkie Pie, what's your name!?" The hyperactive pony said, fixing her bright teal eyes on the petite pink pony.

"Excuse me, but I have to be going." Aurora said dismissively, not even trying to hide her irritation.

"Aww, but we just met!" Pinkie Pie said with disappointment. "I'll bet we could have a lot of fun together!"

"I sincerely doubt it." Aurora continued in the opposite direction of the hyperactive mare, making an attempt to get away.

"Don't be silly! You haven't had fun until you've had it with Pinkie Pie!"

"Then I suppose I'll never be graced with that luxury." Aurora retorted sarcastically as she quickened her pace. The bright pink pony matched her speed, much to her chagrin. "Stop following me."

"I'm not following you; I just have to go in this direction!" Pinkie said with a wide smile.

"You were walking in the opposite direction when you hit me." Aurora said accusingly, halting her movement and turning to face down the mare.

"I got distracted by a pretty looking cloud on my way." Pinkie said almost guiltily.

"Well that's just charming. If you'll _finally_ excuse me, I have to go get something to eat." Aurora mentally cursed herself for elaborating.

"You need to eat!? Come with me, I know the perfect place!" The pink pony reached out her hoof with frightening speed and grabbed onto the surprised hoof of the pony with the forest mane.

Aurora protested and tried to remover herself from the pink pony's clutches, and was shocked to find that her grip was easily overpowering her own. Whoever this pony was, she was now in control of where she was headed. Aurora was dragged along for two city blocks before the hyperactive pony turned abruptly towards a small, unassuming building in between two other storefronts.

The building had a logo that resembled a vinyl record next to a baked confection, framed by what looked like bar chords and sheet music. The title was written in electric blue and neon pink lights, flashing periodically to the beat of the music coming from within.

"_Crescendos and Cupcakes_?" Aurora said speculatively to herself.

"Uhuh! This is my friend's shop! Come on in and get yourself a snack!" Pinkie Pie said, giving her a choice and subsequently throwing her inside.

The scene wasn't at all what she had expected. The sound of the music once muffled was now pounding directly into her entire body. Deep bass and resounding thuds from nearby subwoofers resonated in the petite pink pony's body, shaking her to her very core. The majority of the building was filled up by a dance floor, with two identical bars to either side framing the stage. There were a few unlabeled doors to the back, presumably the offices, and a fire exit. The main spectacle however, was the DJ's stage.

Turntables, speakers, lights, and innumerable records were being manipulated by an unorthodox, albeit skillful unicorn wearing dark purple goggles. She seemed at one with not only the pulsing electronic music she composed, but also the very heartbeat of the party that seemed to be alive and well in the center of the room. The entire scene was intriguing, and yet Aurora couldn't really figure out why.

"You can get a snack over there!" Pinkie Pie yelled over the music, shattering her concentration. Aurora looked over to where the bright pink pony was pointing and saw that one of the bars was actually selling food.

"Uh, thanks…" Aurora said, walking over to the counter. Though she didn't really want to be there, the petite pink pony couldn't argue with the fact that she was starving.

She sat down and ordered plate of hay fries, doing her best not to scarf them down in front of strangers. While she fought her primal urges to devour, Aurora turned her attention back towards the dance floor. The DJ was beginning to wind down her set, as some less energetic music began to take precedence over the previously upbeat tunes. The bass was still pounding in her chest, but the petite pink pony no longer noticed.

The bright pink pony was bounding all over the club, bringing smiles to everypony's faces. She seemed to have a natural talent for butting into pony's lives, but the majority of them didn't seem to mind. Aurora was just glad she wasn't currently being bothered by her.

A look of intrigue flashed across her neon green eyes as she witnessed the hyperactive pony do something she'd never have expected. Stop. The earth pony settled down at the opposite bar and ordered a bubbly drink. Looking at how innocently she behaved with everypony, it had to have been something non-alcoholic.

_Mercy on the world when that pony drinks…_

Aurora saw a stallion approaching the mare, and had a mind to go interrupt. She didn't even know why. Perhaps it was her inherent friendliness that made her seem worth protecting, or maybe Aurora was just naturally overprotective. It wasn't her problem however. She whipped her forest green mane from her eyes and turned back to her meal. The peace was short lived.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!?" Aurora turned around as the music stopped to find the DJ galloping over towards Pinkie Pie.

It took a second to make the connection, but she wasn't yelling at the pink pony. She was yelling at the stallion who'd been talking to her. Pinkie didn't seem to know what was going on, but the stallion looked pretty guilty about something.

"Nothin'! Get outta my face!" The stallion responded hastily.

"How about you get out of my club!?" The DJ replied, lowering her goggles to expose her ruby red eyes at the stallion.

"Why don't you make me!?" The stallion replied audaciously. He reached forward and pushed the white mare backwards and into a table. Aurora was out of her seat before she hit the floor.

She galloped through the now motionless crowd in the middle of the room, heading straight towards the stallion who was about to advance on Pinkie Pie. Aurora leapt upwards and hit the stallion in the side full force, smashing him into the bar. He gasped, not expecting the blow, before turning his vision towards the source.

"Ey, you're dead! Hear me?"

"I only hear you blowing words out of your ass." Aurora said, intentionally provoking the stallion once more.

He raised his hoof to strike, and Aurora waited for it. As his hoof shot forward, she moved to the side with ease and swung her own hoof around his. She shifted her weight, bringing the stallion closer to her. She lowered her head as his came forward and their two skulls collided. Aurora was unscathed; the stallion fell to his knees in shock.

Without waiting for him to get up, Aurora walked around to his backside and grabbed the end of his tail in her mouth. She dragged him towards the clubs exit and began to swing him around and around, gaining sizeable momentum. She released her grip on his tail at the middle of her arc and sent him flying out the door and into the street. By the time the clubs security actually showed up, the problem was solved.

"Sorry for doing your job, boys." Aurora said as she trotted over towards the DJ, who was currently picking herself up. "Are you ok, miss?"

"Ugh, Vinyl Scratch." The mare said as she rubbed the back of her neck. "Thanks for taking care of that. God knows my security team should have."

The mare sent an irritated look at the two bouncers now standing by the door, causing them a bit of well-deserved embarrassment. She turned her attention towards Pinkie Pie before continuing.

"Pinkie, I didn't know you'd be coming by today. You have to be more careful in the city, I told you that."

"I _was_ being careful. He seemed like a nice guy!" Pinkie said defensively, turning her gaze towards Aurora. "That looked really tiring and cool! Mostly cool though. Here, have some of my super bubbly soda!"

"Uh, thanks." Aurora said. She was actually pretty thirsty. Not from whipping the stallion though, that was child's play. The hay fries at the club were just very salty. "Bottoms up."

Aurora took a large swig of the pink pony's drink, savoring the taste as she swallowed. She looked over towards the DJ and saw a look of panic forming in her eyes as she seemed to make a realization of her own. She seemed to be yelling something, but it sounded muffled for some reason.

_Why can I not hear what she's trying to say? And why is the room spinning? Oh, now I know why the DJ was mad at that stallion…_

"H-He…the drank…yes."

With that, the petite pink pony fell to the floor, her eyes rolling back into her head and her consciousness slipping away from her.

_Damn this city._

* * *

**_Well, that went well. Leave your comments and questions below everyone. See you next week!_**


	6. Roommates

Chapter 6: Roommates

"Get her on the couch. No, over there! Over there!"

***Thunk***

"Ooh…you think that hurt her at all?"

"Just don't drop her again, dammit."

"Sorry, sorry!"

Vinyl Scratch and Pinkie Pie were having difficulty carrying their new friend. They didn't know her name, or where she came from, but they did know one thing for certain. She was very heavy for a pony her size.

The petite pink pony had been a lifesaver at the club, but unfortunate circumstances caused the mare to fall unconscious. Vinyl had seen it many times before, which was almost as enraging as the fact that it happened in _her_ club. Rohypnol. That plague of a drug, seemingly designed to make a mares social life terrifying.

This pony took a bullet for Pinkie Pie or more accurately, Pinkie Pie dodged a bullet that then hit the poor mare. Regardless, she took the brunt of what that disgusting stallion dished out, and as such, they owed her a service. A nice warm place to come out her drug induced stupor seemed like a good start.

Vinyl Scratch and Pinkie Pie finally managed to get the dense pony onto the couch in Vinyl's apartment. It was only about a block away from Crescendos and Cupcakes, so the walk wasn't nearly as painful as it could have been. It would have been a breeze if Vinyl had gotten around to learning a more powerful levitation spell, but that wasn't her 'scene' as she liked to say. Why bother learning magic when the music is playing?

"Ok, so now we just wait for her to come around." Vinyl said dusting herself off.

"Is she gonna be okay, Vinyl?" Pinkie Pie asked, her concern evident. She was probably blaming herself for the whole incident.

"She'll be fine, Pinkie. She'll wake up feeling a little groggy, but otherwise alright," Vinyl said, putting her hoof on her shoulder. "Sometimes this stuff just happens."

"Yeah…" Pinkie Pie said pensively. A smile formed on her face and she suddenly perked up. "I'm gonna make her some cupcakes to make up for this! Oh, but should I use chocolate frosting, or vanilla? And what kind of sprinkles!?"

"Uh…"

"WHAT KIND!?"

"Just wing it, Pinkie…" Vinyl said, shifting her eyes to the pony. She had to suppress her urge to pat the hyperactive pony on the head.

"Hmmm…ok!" Pinkie Pie said excitedly. "I'm gonna see if we still have everything. Be right back!"

She skipped off towards the kitchen of the apartment with her goal in mind. Vinyl let her go, and she turned her attention towards the petite pink pony lying on the couch. She looked surprisingly peaceful, despite the fact that she wasn't sleeping by choice. Vinyl Scratch smiled and silently thanked the stranger as she walked deeper into the apartment.

The front room served as the living room, housing a couch, a couple chairs, a coffee table and an artificial fireplace with the door to its left. It was a cozy space, and it was quite obvious that it was heavily used on a daily basis. Vinyl walked towards the back wall of the apartment, walking through what was essentially her dining room. There was a decently sized window directly to her front. The small kitchen to her right and two bedrooms to her left on the opposite wall rounded out the residence nicely.

The goggle-clad pony made it to the back wall and opened up the window, which she promptly bounded out of and onto the fire escape directly below the window sill. The cool night air bit at Vinyl's coat as she walked towards the edge of the railing and peered over the side. The city street below her was still crowded with ponies, eight being early for many of them that favored the night. She couldn't blame them for two reasons. One, it was Saturday in a big city. And two, Vinyl knew exactly how everything became more interesting in the dark.

The unicorn let out a deep sigh that sounded mixed between relief and frustration as she turned her gaze up towards the sky. It was a dark blue, with innumerable stars shining and glimmering festively, reminding Vinyl of her club in the middle of the night. The main lights are off, and every colored stage light is choreographed to the music playing, creating a seductive atmosphere of equal parts beauty and debauchery. And she wouldn't have it any other way.

"Well now I know where the frustration's coming from." Vinyl said to herself with a sigh, this time betraying its true mood.

"And where exactly would that be?"

"Whoa!" Vinyl said unexpectedly, whipping around towards the source of the voice. "Octavia, you scared the crap out of me!"

"I've been standing here the entire time, it's not my fault you didn't notice me." The mare said dismissively. The ambient lighting outside reflected off of her brownish grey coat and her dark brown mane, muddling her image against the buildings outer wall. The only thing that stood out about her was the bright pink bowtie and white collar around her neck. She walked over to where Vinyl was standing and joined her in leaning on the railing. "So, what exactly is troubling you tonight? Actually, I have a better question. Why are you not down the street working?"

"Well, the answer to your first question is because I'm not working. I really like working the club on Saturday's. That's when"—

"That's when all the 'hot pieces of ass' come in. Yes, I'm aware," Octavia said rolling her deep purple eyes, resting them on her own treble clef adorned flank. "And why aren't you there now?"

"That's a little more complicated." Vinyl said with a wide grin.

"Well then, do you plan on regaling me the tale?" Octavia asked expectantly. "Or do I have to wait in suspense as usual."

Vinyl looked at the mare and smiled. The apartment had two rooms, and the unicorn was fortunate enough to be sharing the dwelling with a pony like Octavia. Neat, responsible… in essence, her polar opposite. Octavia took on the responsibility, and Vinyl brought the fun. A match made in heaven.

"So get this. I'm working the start of my shift, and your sister comes wandering in." Vinyl paused, arching her eyebrow at her companion.

"Well if she's involved, this must be good," Octavia said understandingly. "She's only been here for about a week and she's already notorious."

"So I've heard. She's in the kitchen baking, by the way." Vinyl said before continuing. "She came in with this _other _pony. She looked pretty rugged, but not in a butch lesbian kinda way. More like she's seen some things."

"And what about stuff? Has she seen stuff?" Octavia replied sarcastically, earning a chuckle from her white hued friend.

"I'm just saying she wasn't bad looking, she just looked _bad_ you know? Anyway, she comes into the story later. Pinkie Pie sits at the bar and orders a drink"—

"Are you telling me a joke?"

"Shut up! She orders a drink and this pigheaded stallion comes up to her and starts hitting on her. Your sister is legendary for being oblivious, so I'm sure you know how that went."

"Fabulously as usual." Octavia said with a calm smile.

"Exactly. So instead of giving up and walking away, this bastard tried to roofie her!"

"What!?"

"_I know!_ I stopped the music, walked over there and gave him a piece of mind!" Vinyl said, the fire from before once again burning in her eyes.

"I should hope so! What did he do in response?" Octavia asked; her joking tone had now vanished completely.

"He broke one of my tables," Vinyl said irritably. "Using my entire body."

"Vinyl Scratch, are you ok!?" Octavia said, expressing her concern.

"I'm fine, but that's not what this story's about. It's about that firecracker in the vest I told you about."

"Vest?" Octavia asked curiously.

"Oh, maybe I didn't mention that part. She's wearing this cool vest with a lot of pockets and zippers and clasps and"—

"I think I get it, Vinyl. And you're using the present tense. Why are you using the present tense?" Octavia asked suspiciously.

"Because she's _presently_ on our couch," Vinyl said, showing off her infamous grin. "Don't worry though, she's unconscious."

"Oh, she's unconscious. How could I even _begin_ to worry after hearing that?"

"Can I finish?"

"I don't know, _can_ you?"

"ANYWAY, she came running across the dance floor and rammed the stallion so hard the bar almost cracked when he hit it! The dude tried to punch her, but get this: She dodged it, and bashed him in the head with her _skull_!" Vinyl pointed to her head for emphasis.

"And that's why she's unconscious?" Octavia said with a roll of her eyes. "I never understood the logic behind smashing your head into _anything_."

"No, the stallion dropped! She tossed him out on his ass by the time security showed up," Vinyl said, grimacing at their poor performance. "Pinkie Pie offered the mare her drink as a thank you, and of course neither of _them_ knew why I picked a fight with the scum."

"I see. So you dragged her here out of the kindness of your heart." Octavia said with an edge.

"You know me so well."

"Well, we've already got Pinkie as a house guest, so you're going to kick her out once she's feeling alright." Octavia moved from the railing and began to climb back into the apartment through the window. She turned as she went in to add a thought. "I'm all for being polite thanks to her actions, but this isn't a hotel."

"Roger that, Captain!" Vinyl saluted ironically before following the mare inside.

Octavia paused at the dining room and turned her attention towards the kitchen. "Pinkie Pie, how are you doing? Anything broken?"

"Just the record for most _delicious_ baked confections this side of the planet!" The bubbly mare said, practically singing her words. "They'll be ready steady in a jiffy!"

"That's great!" Octavia said semi-enthusiastically. "Ok, let's see whom we have here."

The grey earth pony mare walked around the dining room table and towards the couch where Vinyl's ward was supposedly located. She couldn't help but wonder what kind of pony they brought back here. She at least sounded nice from Vinyl's description, but her judgment has been known to get cloudy now and again. Octavia stepped around the couch and laid eyes on the mare. She scrunched up her face for a second, as if deeply confused, and then her eyes went wide and her mouth fell open in shock.

_No…no no no it isn't… It can't be her._

"Vinyl?" Octavia asked hurriedly. "Did this mare give you her name?"

"Uh, no. She never got the chance. Pinkie didn't catch it either," Vinyl said, concern now crawling into her expression. "She sort of just bumped into her."

"Damn it all, I can't be sure…"

"Whoa, sure about what?" Vinyl asked. "What's going on?"

_Same mane, same coat color. The cutie mark is new…_

"I have to find something. Let me know when she wakes up." Octavia turned away from the unconscious mare and made a beeline straight to her bedroom on the left.

Once inside, she closed the door and opened up the small wardrobe on the opposite end of the room. She pushed aside several spare bowties and an evening gown, revealing a small box resting on one of the closets shelves. She grabbed the box from the wardrobe and set in on the floor, taking an extra second to stare at it before removing the top.

Octavia tossed the lid aside and began rifling through its contents, looking for something specific. It didn't take her long to find it. The grey mare held up a medium sized bow-tie, bedazzled with a menagerie of small stones in varied shades of green and pink. In separately colored stones, matching the color of her eyes, was the phrase 'A+O=BFF'. Octavia had to hold back tears as she tried to fight the urge to smile.

_Don't get excited. You know she's gone for good._

Octavia held the trinket in her hooves for another few minutes before putting it and the box away. The mare climbed onto her bed and laid down, losing herself in the past as she waited for the mystery mare on her couch to wake.

* * *

_Bleeeeeeh…I don't want to get up…_

Aurora could feel her eyelids slowly becoming weightless, attempting to open and wrench her from her drug induced nap. The mental stupor was now all but gone, but remnants of the substance were still coursing through her bloodstream, making her feel sore and lethargic.

_Do your best. You have no clue where you are after all._

That fact made her neon green eyes shoot open in panic. She couldn't afford to be ignorant of her whereabouts, and she definitely couldn't let her guard down like that again. Aurora raised her head from the cushion of the couch she found herself resting on and surveyed the room around her. It was darker. Much darker. She wasn't sure, but it seemed like at least a few hours had passed and night had fallen.

With great effort, the petite pink pony removed herself from the couch and made an effort to look around. It was a small apartment, with only a few doors. The window was open however, letting in the cool night air. That was good enough for her.

_I'd hate to leave without saying goodbye, but I'm sure they'll forgive me._

Aurora quietly made her way towards the back of the apartment, taking great care to muffle her hoofsteps on the hardwood floor. One misstep and it wouldn't hesitate to squeak, potentially alerting everypony who lived here. Granted that probably wouldn't happen, but she wasn't taking any more chances.

Her hoof made contact with the window sill and with a quick hop; she bounded out onto the fire escape and surveyed the area below for any signs of trouble. It was fairly quiet, but hardly devoid of ponies. It had to be about midnight, but the streets below were still host to many of the more adventurous citizens. Aurora would have to be careful who saw her.

"Leaving?"

"Gah!" Aurora noticeably flinched and she looked over to find the same white unicorn from before, goggles and all, standing quietly on the other side of the fire escape.

"The way you cringed like that, I'd think that you're trying to escape from a bad one-night stand." Vinyl said humorously.

"Yeah? That's kind of what brought me here in the first place…" Aurora replied, turning to face the mare. "I'm assuming you're the one who brought me here. Thank you."

"That was a courtesy. You saved our flanks back at the club. I owed you a place to come to after, well…"

"Yes…another soul claimed by the poison drink." Aurora said sarcastically.

"You were roofied."

"I'm aware."

"Let me clarify, you were roofied _four hours ago,_" Vinyl said curiously. "And yet here you are, up and about like nothing happened. You should be out, at least until morning."

"Fast metabolism." Aurora deadpanned eager to leave.

"Right… I'll do you a favor and ignore the part of my brain that says that's impossible." Vinyl stepped closer to the mare, and fixed her ruby red eyes on her. "In return, you'll do me the favor of staying put while I go get someone."

"Who would that be?" Aurora asked, now suspicious of the unicorn's intentions.

"You'll see in a second. I'll be right back," Vinyl said as she climbed back into the apartment. "Oh, and don't try to leave. I'll hear you."

"I doubt that."

"You rolled off the couch and landed on all fours, turned about three quarters a revolution and took exactly eighteen steps before jumping onto the window sill." Vinyl scratch turned her head smugly towards the petite pink pony. "Nice job keeping the floor from squeaking. You're the stealthiest pony I've ever _almost_ not heard."

Aurora stared wide-eyed at the mare and tried to avoid letting her jaw fall to the floor. Her response was enough to reassure the unicorn that she wasn't going anywhere for the moment. Vinyl disappeared into the apartment, leaving the forest maned pony behind to look out over the city block below. It wasn't long before she herself heard hoofsteps, followed by the tell-tale squeak of the wood flooring.

Aurora turned towards the window to address the mare as she came back. "Didn't you just warn me about that? Why don't you practice what you…?"

Aurora trailed off and her neon green eyes went wide with disbelief. She had the sudden urge to jump from the makeshift balcony, as she was clearly in some sort of nightmare from the past. The white unicorn she had just spoken too wasn't the pony now emerging from the apartment. In her place was a brownish grey mare with a dark brown mane, deep purple eyes, wearing a neat bright pink bowtie.

"Preach." Aurora completed her sentence shakily, standing defensively as the mare took a step closer onto the fire escape. "I-I'm sorry… I don't mean to stare, it's just"—

"I remind you of someone?" the mare replied. "Funny, I'm having the same qualm about you."

"I guess we just happen to look familiar to each other." Aurora replied, not believing herself as she said it. "Besides, the pony I knew lived in"—

"Canterlot."

"Yes… in the"—

"Theatre District." The mare replied confidently as she adjusted her bowtie.

"By?" Aurora asked with a hopeful smile.

"By that old grey house. You know…?"

"The one with the big ugly crack that really needs some paint because a fresh coat could probably seal up the smell and save the neighborhood from turning into zombies that would eat the whole city and cause a mass panic across the whole of Equestria!" The two mares said in perfect synchronization, their enthusiasm unbridled and unfettered.

"Octavia?"

"The one and only. And that makes _you_ Aurora, now doesn't it?"

The pink pony couldn't respond. Her smile widened considerably and tears welled up in her eyes as she leapt forward to embrace the mare she now recognized as her friend from all those years ago. Octavia caught her in her hooves and held her tight, tears of her own running down her face and onto Aurora's back. They stood silently in one another's embrace, making up for years of lost affection in a single moment.

"I can't believe it." Aurora replied, breathing laboriously through her convulsing chest.

"It's been too long, Rory." Octavia agreed, burying her face in the pink pony's mane.

"Hey guys! Oh, I'll uh, be in the kitchen." Vinyl said after poking her head out the window. She quickly retreated back into the apartment to avoid spoiling the moment any further.

The two mares looked her way for a moment and then laughed, realizing how emotional their display must have looked to their unfortunate witness. Octavia let go of Aurora and moved towards the window.

"Come on inside. I want you two to get acquainted. You _can_ stay for a while, right?" Octavia said, trying futilely to hide her hopefulness.

Aurora's smile faded as the harsh reality set in. She looked around outside and her head ran a mile a minute as she came to a decision.

"Sure. Of course, I'd love to stay." Aurora said, banishing a thousand ill thoughts from her head.

The two ponies climbed back into the apartment and closed the window behind them, sealing the room from the cold night air. Staying in one place for so long probably wasn't the best of ideas, and everything about this situation screamed trouble to the petite pink pony. But seeing Octavia after all this time…it had to change things this one time.

_I'll be careful, and I'll make sure nopony knows who she is to me._

Aurora followed Octavia wordlessly into the kitchen, fighting to erase the frown now glued to her face.


	7. Keyes' Lime Pie

Chapter 7: Keyes' Lime Pie

"So then what happened?" Twilight asked curiously, clearly having been drawn into the story.

"Plenty. It isn't my turn to speak, however," Aurora said, turning her gaze towards Thundervolt expectantly. "I believe I was promised an exciting tale of my own."

"What?" the golden eyed pegasus asked in confusion. "Oh, you wanted to know what I was up to."

"Yea, tell 'em all what you were up to." Reggie said abrasively, and with an afterthought. "Ass."

"Whoa, what's eating khaki?" Rainbow Dash said, looking over her shoulder towards the stallion.

"I'll just let him tell the story," Reggie said, addressing the cyan mare directly. "Your friend caused me a lot of frustration."

"Yea, but I do that all the time." Vinyl Scratch added thoughtfully.

"Yes, but it's mild and consistent so I live with it," Reggie looked at Thundervolt with a half serious glare. "He'll just randomly cause me large amounts of aggravation in the window of an hour or so, then saunter away proudly as if nothing happened."

"Stop, you're making me blush." Thundervolt said cheekily, earning a small giggle from Fluttershy.

"So, do we have another story?" Aurora asked, already knowing the answer.

"That we do. So, I was flying around in the dark looking for the pink ninja…"

* * *

"Aurora!" The white pegasus shouted desperately, seeking the companion he knew he'd never find. "Dammit Aurora, you're putting yourself in danger here!"

Thundervolt's heart was racing as his golden eyes scanned the tree line in all directions. Aurora would never be dumb enough to stay towards the top of it, and so the sight before the pegasus was miles of unbroken forest; a sea of black tendrils poking out from the ground trying desperately to reach the sky.

After sharing a moment of desperation with the foliage, Thundervolt flew upwards to get a bigger picture. After gaining a few hundred feet, he could see for miles in all directions. To the west was a large mountain range, and over it Neighagra Falls, where the two ponies had just come from. To the north, east, and south, was miles and miles of uninterrupted forest. Great if you were going camping. Terrible if you were trying to find somepony that was excellent at remaining hidden in that very environment.

Aurora was smart, and she knew that he'd never find her in the forest. She also knew that he'd be looking for her one acre at a time. Just because she was good at camouflaging herself, didn't mean he couldn't find her if he tried hard enough. Thundervolt glanced towards the east and caught a bit of light on the horizon. He mulled the sight over in his head for a moment before realizing what it was.

_A light source that big all the way here has to be a major city. The only metropolis near here is Manehattan…_

"She wouldn't…would she?" Thundervolt asked himself.

The forest was no doubt the best place to hide. Aurora could try to outrun him for days, maybe even weeks in there. It wouldn't even be hard for her. But that was the key; she knew he'd be looking for her in the forest. She wouldn't go to a populated area like that because it's the wrong move. There were too many variables to account for. Thundervolt kept adding reasons why Aurora wouldn't head east, all while staring directly at the massive amount of light in the distance.

"There's only one way to find out…" Thundervolt started flying in that direction, no doubt making great time compared to his terrestrial bound friend.

The pegasus flew for miles, not even bothering to pay close attention to the ground as he flew. There wasn't a point, and it would just slow him down. As he continued heading east, the lights slowly molded themselves into a coherent skyline, buildings claiming the brightness as their own. It took about twenty minutes of cruising to reach the edge of the forest. Thundervolt quickly found a small pocket of cloud to meld into, effectively staking out miles of wilderness from the air.

_If I'm right, she'll be coming out from the northern side._

He waited for hours, pouring all of his concentration into scanning the ground for any signs of movement. There was no telling if or when she'd be breaching the forest, but it didn't matter. It was his only option at this point. An option that didn't seem to yield any results. That is until a certain pony walked right under him without even knowing it.

Unknowingly proving his theory wrong, Aurora emerged from the tree line directly in between the southern and eastern sides of the forest. Now openly under Thundervolt's staging area, she looked towards the city and stood pensively for a few moments before taking action. She ran down the hill until she reached a small outcropping with a crevice in the hillside. She tucked herself in there, presumably for the night to rest.

_Considering how far she ran, I'm not surprised._

Thundervolt stared at the crevice for about a half an hour to be sure she stayed put. The entire time, he thought about the current situation. She had only left because they were straining their friendship. He was convinced that if she hadn't ran, he would have been the one bolting after a short while. Granted, they still worked professionally, but ever since the two ponies broke off their fledgling relationship, their personal connection had degraded immensely. Thundervolt's eyes were glassed over, and though he was still staring in the direction of the small cave, he was no longer looking.

_She'll be there until morning, and then she'll head into the city. I should go on ahead and see if I can't figure something out…_

The pegasus removed himself from his cloud cover and slowly listed towards the front entrance to the city. Manehattan wasn't unfamiliar territory, but it had been a while to say the least. There was no sense in flying towards the center of the city if it didn't look the same.

_Then again, I'm sure I know of at least one building that's still there._

Thundervolt picked up the speed. He had no idea where Aurora planned to go, but he knew somepony that could help him find out. Once again, the pegasus adjusted his flight path towards the center of the city. Manehattan was a very mixed settlement, much like Ponyville except on a larger scale. Earth ponies dominated the industrial district as usual, Unicorns took many technically demanding jobs that hooves simply couldn't accomplish, and the Pegasi moved the entire city with power and transportation.

If it weren't for the crime rate, it could be considered a utopia. It wasn't a particularly high statistic either, but considering the near flawless record of Canterlot, Ponyville, and other small towns such as Appleloosa, it wasn't anything to sneeze at. The city would be in ruins if it weren't for the Manehattan Police Department. Canterlot had its Royal Guard, Appleloosa has its sheriff, and even Ponyville managed to handle its problems in house. The MPD had its work cut out for it, but it was doing a great job considering the size of the population.

Thundervolt was heading towards the financial district however, which was located at the heart of the city. Manehattan was Equestria's center for economics, handling the majority of the country's business dealings. Manehattan sold what Fillydelphia crafted, usually for double the cost of production. And with the Royal sisters in charge, most citizens were fairly well off. A hiccup here or there was inevitable, but Equestria had the lowest unemployment rate in the world for a reason.

The pegasus was looking for one building in particular. The _tallest_ one. It took a bit longer than usual thanks to the pitch black sky, but within a few minutes, the massive structure loomed before him. _Doodle Corp._ Definitely, the most ridiculous name for a company anypony had ever seen. That didn't matter however, as it was also the most successful. _Doodle Corp._ had the most land, the most money, and by far the most control. They also had somepony Thundervolt needed, and a wall of protocol in between him and his target.

Thundervolt landed on the top of a neighboring building overlooking the massive skyscraper. He didn't know exactly how high he was, but the pegasus guessed he was at least twenty stories high. _Doodle Corp._ extended upwards another fifteen.

_Hmmm…how should I do this?_

The building looked much like any of the others, but it was also a very special piece of architecture in that its glass outer surface curved as it ascended, giving the building the appearance of a spiraling rectangular prism. There were air ducts on the top, and sewage paths that lead to the basement. Both paths could work, but there was a difficult choice to make about his approach.

_Do I want to make absolutely sure I'm not caught, or do I want to avoid smelling like a dirty toilet…?_

* * *

"I wonder which one the little priss chose," Aurora said, looking over to Applejack with a smile before turning towards Rarity. "Because everypony here knows how important it is to look and smell your best when infiltrating a secure building."

"Aurora, I have a white coat. Do you know easily a white coat stains?" Thundervolt deadpanned.

"I think I can imagine." Aurora replied sarcastically.

"Can you? Can you _really_ imagine?" Thundervolt asked, looking to Rarity for support.

"I agree, is that truly in your realm of understanding, dear?"

Aurora looked at Rarity with a bewildered look on her face, and then turned towards Vinyl Scratch along with everyone else. "Don't look at me like that. Have you ever tried to wash a coat like this? I'm tempted to use bleach sometimes."

"Ok, I get the point! So, that means you decided to head in through the air ducts?" Aurora said, motioning for Thundervolt to continue his story.

"Basically. I flew over, opened up one of the vents and jumped in…"

* * *

"Pony sized vents are the best thing since sliced bread." Thundervolt said to himself as he slid down the air conditioning shaft.

The pegasus looked for any sources of light as he did, eager to find an opening into the building quickly. It took a few floors of controlled sliding to reach that goal on what he presumed to be the seventeenth floor, which would be in the middle of the building. A small shred of light shone through one of the many branches of vents, giving the blue maned pegasus a way in.

He stuffed his body into the vent and held his wings in to give him enough room to breathe. Using his hooves to pull himself forward, Thundervolt dragged himself a few meters until he could clearly see where the light was coming from. A small grate bolted to the air ducts frame gave him a view of the floor below, and a line of sight on the hallway. There wasn't much to look at, but that was good. No ponies around to make getting in difficult. The pegasus continued down the vents path, looking for an easier exit. He finally settled on a larger grate, positioned on the side of vent, rather than on the floor.

He braced his body against the wall of the vent and pushed his back hoof against the bottom left side of the opening. With a bit of applied force, the screw holding the grate in stripped and came out of the socket quietly. A few more pushes towards the other side removed the second bolt, enabling the pegasus to slip out of the vent while still leaving it attached to the wall.

Now out in the open, Thundervolt had to move quickly. The floor he was on was dimly lit, but it was still easy enough to spot a bright white pegasus in a combat vest. Pressing himself against the wall, Thundervolt scanned the room that opened up in front of him as he quietly slid down the empty hallway.

He reached the opening to the room and ducked immediately to the left, hiding behind a small collection of crates blanketed with shadows. Thundervolt continued to observe the room and saw that it was devoid of any life. There were a few tables along the periphery of the room with different types of machinery and electrical parts strewn across them, and the roof extended upwards another additional story. Also around the edge of the room was a U-shaped balcony with stairs leading up to them.

There were two sets of stairs on either side of the balcony leading up to an unseen third floor, as well as a metal pole in the corner of the room that passed through both the balcony and the upper floor, indicating that it stretched across all three levels. It resembled the poles in fire stations ponies used to descend quickly, which made perfect sense. Why _wouldn't_ something like that be there?

Thundervolt froze as he heard a noise in the distance. His ears perked up and he looked towards the third floor. Breaking glass and a couple voices put the pegasus on full alert as he took to the air, flying up towards the stairway on the second floor. He touched down and stepped carefully, moving up the stairs just high enough to get a glimpse of the uppermost level. It was equally dimmed, with only the center ceiling lights providing any illumination. This room seemed to be laid out similarly to the bottom floor, sans an extended ceiling.

The pair of voices was now much clearer.

"Come on, that's not ok," a deep, iconic voice said with ire. "I have to keep this place clean myself you know!"

"That explains the mess." A disciplined and reserved voice replied with indifference.

The two voices sounded very familiar, which was all the motivation Thundervolt needed to get into a better position. A work station close by the stairs provided enough concealment for the pegasus to move from the open stairwell and onto the third floor without exposing himself. He slinked towards it, pressing his body against the cold metal.

"Very funny. Do you remember where I left the washcloth?" the deep voice asked, taking a few steps away from the white pegasus' hiding place.

He used the opportunity to move farther to the right, passing numerous workstations and heading into the darker portion of the room.

"I think you left it wherever it was you were planning on buying it from," the second voice said almost seriously. "I can't see you actually purchasing any supplies related to tidying up."

"Look, it isn't actually that bad in here," the deep voice said dismissively, "It's not even dirty. It's just cluttered, and it's my own brand of organized chaos."

"Nice oxymoron. The washcloth is on the table over there, at your six."

The deep voiced stallion was facing away from Thundervolt. That meant he was about to turn around and head directly towards the dark corner the pegasus was currently skulking in. He quickly darted behind the table to the far corner of the room and settled in, prepared to act invisible. That was when he noticed the washcloth falling on the floor next to him.

_Crap._

"The damn thing just fell off the table."

"Oh no, that means you'll have to take a few extra steps."

Thundervolt heard the stallion approaching and had nowhere to go. If he moved from behind the table, they would see him moving. He had to find something to draw their attention away from the table. Thinking fast, Thundervolt picked up a small beaker lying idly to the side and flung it towards the opposite staircase. It shattered, falling to the balcony below and causing the stallion approaching him to look away long enough to make an escape.

"What the hell? Is that stupid intern again?" the deep voice said irritably.

Thundervolt ducked behind yet another table, this one located at the back wall of the room, directly in the middle of either staircase. He controlled his breathing, bringing his heart rate back down to avoid giving himself away.

"I'm going to go kick his sorry flank out of my"—

"There's no one downstairs. Reggie, come over here and get behind me. Now." The other voice said quietly, with a sense of urgency.

_So it is him…good._

Reggie listened and walked back over to the other stallion's position, presumably doing as told. Thundervolt wasn't sure what had caused his sudden change in demeanor, but he couldn't rule out the possibility that he'd been spotted on that last maneuver.

"I know you're over there."

_Dammit._

"What are you"—

"10-66, I repeat: 10-66." The other stallion said in a low voice. "Someone's here, in the room with us."

_10-66? He's using police scanner codes… It couldn't be._

"You have ten seconds to show yourself before I consider you a hostile threat! Come out with your hooves where I can see them."

Thundervolt thought for a moment, trying to register who exactly was talking to him. After a short while, he settled on the identity of the pony in question and decided it was worth the risk.

"What are you gonna do, make sure I get all my vitamin C?" the pegasus exclaimed, waiting for a response.

"Wait a minute…" Reggie said, clearly recognizing the pegasus' voice.

"…If you're who I think you are, you'd best show yourself before I cram my hoof down your throat," the stallion said threateningly, "Or you know, some of my famous Lime Pie."

"Keyes, you're a real son of a bitch," Thundervolt said with a small laugh. "You couldn't fall for the decoy, just this _one_ time?"

"I'm no rookie. Besides, I feel like it'd be an insult to my intelligence to fall for that stupid trick."

"Hey!" Reggie cried out in offense.

"Why don't you come out from behind that table so I can get a solid ID on that ugly mug of yours?" Keyes said in a friendly tone.

Now confident in his safety, Thundervolt stood up and looked over towards the two voices to look them over. Reggie was standing behind Keyes just as he had been told, his magenta eyes now lighting up in recognition and a large smile forming on his face. Keyes was standing there in a firm yet relaxed position, scrutinizing the pegasus. His lime green eyes moved up and down until he seemed satisfied.

Thundervolt took a moment to look him over as well, not having seen the unicorn for a long while. He had a pale green coat, and short cut green mane highlighted with another green paralleling his coat. His cutie mark was a magnifying glass, indicating his uncanny ability to observe details and make connections. This would explain his successful involvement in the Manehattan Police Department. It would also rationalize the small brown vest to contain his badge, and the watch he wore on his front left hoof.

"Thundervolt!?" Reggie asked, half in excitement, half in disbelief. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I'd like to know that as well. You broke into a very prestigious corporation and destroyed some of its property," Keyes said, nodding his head towards the remains of the beaker. "You have a good reason as to why I shouldn't arrest you right now?"

"Yes, I do. You'd never succeed, and I'd hate for a friend of mine to waste his time." Thundervolt replied with a half joking tone.

"I've taken that as a challenge before, and it didn't exactly work out well…*sigh* Why are you here?"

"I came here looking to talk to Reggie about something. He's the only pony out here besides you I can trust, and I'm pretty sure he can help me."

"So you come back after all this time just to cash in a favor?" Reggie asked, sounding disappointed. "The least you could do would be to come to poker night once in a while."

Thundervolt looked over to the table the two ponies were standing next to and noticed a deck of cards strewn about the table, along with a couple stacks of bits. There were a few empty bottles of beer and hard apple cider, as well as one shattered on the floor.

"Sorry, but it's the nature of my employment. I don't exactly get to take holidays." Thundervolt replied.

"But you're an investigator from the Canterlot Guard Divisions. You're _supposed_ to get time off." Keyes said warily, hardening his gaze.

"Wait, you told me you were a member of the Canterlot Engineering Council!" Reggie yelled incredulously. "What happened to that?"

Both ponies now looked angrily at the forlorn pegasus, who's golden eyes darted in between their two stares. He ran a few scenarios in his head before ultimately deciding to come out with the truth. Though he hadn't shared everything with the two ponies, they were trustworthy, and that would have to be enough.

"Look, I lied to both of you. My _real_ job required it." Thundervolt walked closer as he continued to speak. "I used to be under the employ of a really shady unicorn that made it his personal mission to take out the trash. My partner and I would end whatever it is they were doing…one way or another."

That last statement got Keyes' attention in the worst possible way, but if he had any suspicions, he kept them to himself. Thundervolt continued speaking. "I lied to you Keyes, because I needed you to cooperate long enough for me to get information on one of our targets. And Reggie, we needed a lot advanced gear that you were great at making. Ordering them from an actual company would have been suspicious, so I asked you to make two 'prototypes' of each gadget to be judged by the non-existent council."

"And?" Reggie asked expectantly.

"They all worked great. That's why you kept getting that grant money."

"I suppose that's why it was always sent in cash…" Reggie said to himself, making the connection.

"You never thought that was suspicious?" Keyes asked as he planted his hoof into his face.

"Uh…no?"

"Wow, it's no wonder they stuck you down here by yourself…" Keyes said with a roll of his eyes.

"Nobody _stuck_ me down here. I decided to take this room for myself that way no one would bother me," Reggie replied, suddenly grimacing and looking at his hooves. "Dammit, there's cider leaking onto my hooves. Where's the wash cloth!?"

"It hasn't moved." Reggie walked over to retrieve the towel, and Keyes turned his attention back towards the pegasus in front of him. "So why are you telling us this? Why not come up with a less ridiculous lie?"

"It's may be ridiculous, but it's true. I'm telling you for two reasons. One being that I recently…_quit_ my previous job and the boss wasn't too happy about it. Two, you and Reggie are the only two ponies I know that can always be found in this area, and that I can place a shred of trust in." Thundervolt said genuinely, looking into the pale green unicorns hard eyes.

"You…you're on the run aren't you?" Keyes said calmly, causing Reggie to look over with wide eyes.

"Perceptive. One of the many reasons I liked working with you."

"If you're a fugitive from the law, then it's my duty as a member of law enforcement to bring you in and have you expedited to wherever it is you belong." Keyes said, taking an aggressive step forward.

"That's all well and good Officer Limestone"—

"Detective."

"_Detective_ Limestone. I'm not a fugitive from the law. I'm on the run from somepony's personal agenda, not for any crime in particular," Thundervolt said, looking sternly at the unicorn, "You couldn't convict me of any crimes because you couldn't _prove_ any of them."

"Don't test me. I've got you for breaking and entering if nothing else." Keyes replied coldly, keeping up the professionalism even as he regressed into a more relaxed stance.

"And like I said, good luck catching me. I'm not here to cause any trouble. I'm just here to ask Reggie for a small favor." Thundervolt shifted his attention to the khaki unicorn mopping up the alcohol staining the floor. "So how about it Reggie? Care to help out an old friend?"

"The old friend that lied to my face on multiple occasions?" Reggie asked, arching his eyebrow at the pegasus. "Sure, on one condition. Tell me how the two-way's are working."

"You mean those communicators you gave me? They had excellent range and clarity for such small little things." Thundervolt said appreciatively.

"_Had?_" Reggie asked worriedly.

"Had. They broke. Yeah…that's it. _Broke._" Thundervolt said, almost trying to sound ridiculous.

"*Sigh* I really liked those… I have the schematic, I can make more." Reggie stood up and threw the wash cloth onto a neighboring table. "So, what did you need?"

"I need to keep an eye on somepony that can't see me."

"Well if they can't see you, why don't you just follow them from a few feet away?" Keyes said sounding completely serious. If you didn't know him, you wouldn't know he was being sarcastic.

"Do you have anything I can use to watch them from afar and maybe at night too?"

"I'm sure I've got a pair of binoculars with a night-vision setting lying around somewhere. I'll fish them out for you in a minute. Until then, wanna sit in for a few hands?" Reggie asked hopefully, wearing a toothy grin.

"I don't know. I don't really want to take your binoculars _and_ your money…" Thundervolt said cheekily.

"Implying that you'll leave here and still have money of your own." Keyes said, a sly grin having worked its way onto his face.

"What's the game?" Thundervolt replied shortly.

"Five-Card, Kings are wild. The buy-in is ten bits." Reggie said.

"For you, it's _twenty_." Keyes added.

"I hope you enjoyed taking all of Reggie's money, Keyes, because I'll be winning it from _you_ shortly." Thundervolt said confidently, challenging the pale green unicorn.

"Just because you can bluff, doesn't mean you can play, boy." Keyes replied condescendingly.

"Says the youngest one in the room." Thundervolt rolled his eyes and smiled.

"Boy, I'll taze you."

"And I'll laugh!" Reggie added enthusiastically.

The three stallions laughed heartily and proceeded to set up the game of cards. Despite his better judgment, Thundervolt decided to unwind for a short while. If Aurora could run off and take a vacation, he could afford a couple of hours before having to be on watch. He picked up the first hand of cards dealt to him and studied them for a moment before an invisible frown made its way into his head.

_Five of Spades, Ace of Diamonds, Ten of Clubs, Queen of Clubs, Three of hearts. Looks like I'll be leaving tonight a little bit poorer…_

* * *

"So wait, you're mad at him because he broke into your lab? Or is it because he lied to you?" Vinyl Scratch asked, rubbing her temples in confusion.

"What? Neither." Reggie said, baffled by the ruby eyed unicorns questions.

"He's mad because I took all his money at the poker table." Thundervolt replied with a half smile. "The only reason he still talks to me is because Limey took all the money from _me_."

"That's right. Nobody takes my hard earned money but Keyes."

"So you were watching me the whole time I was in Manehattan?" Aurora said irritably, fixing her gaze on the white pegasus. "Why am I even telling you the story?"

"First of all, you're telling everypony here the story. Second, I was only watching you until you came into town and got settled in with Vinyl."

"How did _that_ end up happening?" Twilight asked curiously.

"Yeah, weren't you trying to leave in a hurry?" Spike chipped in, motivated by Twilight's input.

"Well Spike that was the plan until I saw Octavia again. She was my only true friend as a filly before I met the winged wonder over there." Aurora said reflectively, shooting the pegasus an appreciative, if not patronizing look.

"Why don't you tell us how you got reacquainted?" Fluttershy said softly, curious about the subject.

"I suppose that would be a good next step." Aurora took a breath and gathered her thoughts. "Once we got past the introductions and some of the initial reminiscing, Octavia had a few questions for me…"

* * *

_**The story picks up next chapter everyone, so stick around. Leave your comments, questions, suggestions, money, jewelry, cake, and dreams in the box below, and have a great day!**_


	8. Cold Wind Blows

Chapter 8: Cold Wind Blows

"I just don't get why it took you so long to come and find me. I stayed in Canterlot for years after you left." Octavia said with a pang of sadness, her purple eyes focused on the small pink pony.

"I just…couldn't tear myself away from what I was doing," Aurora said, looking anywhere but into the eyes of the light grey mare, "By the time I was able to look for you, you were already gone. I figured you'd moved on…"

"I did. It took a long time, but I did…" Octavia said. "I had to convince myself that you didn't abandon me."

"I would never do that to you! If I could have seen you, I would have! It just wouldn't have been"— Aurora cut herself off, not wanting to betray the details of her incarceration. She was still on the run, and couldn't get her involved. Not Octavia.

"It just wouldn't have been what?"

"It wouldn't have been for the best." Aurora swallowed her lie bitterly. "You needed to grow without me to become a better mare. I just wish I could have said goodbye."

"Aurora, I love you, which is why I can say this honestly: That's bullshit and you know _damn well_ that that's bullshit." Octavia said frankly, gaining the attention of her unicorn friend.

"Tavi, did you just swear?" Vinyl said, removing her goggles to look over the mare.

"Vinyl, do me a favor and give us some privacy." Octavia said flatly, still staring directly at Aurora.

"You want me do _what_ now?" Vinyl said, trying to push her buttons.

"I would very much appreciate it if you left us alone for a moment so we could discuss some private matters."

"I'm sorry, I'm still not"—

"Vinyl Scratch! Piss off!" Octavia yelled, her patience finally failing, much to the unicorns delight.

"That's the spirit! Vinyl out." The mare said with a smug grin before exiting the room.

Octavia rolled her eyes with disdain before returning her attention to the conversation at hand. "Aurora, something's going on that you're not telling me."

"Octavia, what are you talking about?" Aurora said, trying _and_ failing to be convincing.

"Seriously? You show up in the city at the most random time possible, somehow end up on my couch _unconscious_ after getting into a fight with some random guy, thank you for that by the way," Octavia said with oddly placed gratitude before continuing her rant, "And you immediately try to escape from my window clad in what looks like something you'd go to war in! Look me in the eyes and tell me nothing's wrong."

Aurora did as Octavia commanded. Her neon green eyes locked to her face and took in every detail. The grey mare's furrowed and confident eyebrows, her piercing stare, and her normally soft complexion embroiled with distrust and anger painted a very worrying picture in Aurora's mind.

"Nothing's wrong." Aurora said, completely devoid of emotion. She knew Octavia didn't believe her. She knew that she'd get angry, and feel betrayed. But she couldn't tell her the truth. She couldn't endanger her. The less she knew the better.

"The fact that you're willing to lie to my face isn't very comforting, Rory." Octavia said, shifting her features in concern. "You can tell me anything. I'd be the last pony that would judge you"—

"You don't have any idea what you're trying to get yourself into. Please just _believe _me when I tell you to drop it," Aurora said coldly, breaking her stare, "I never planned on coming back into your life. Not like this."

"You're still in the middle of it, aren't you?" Octavia asked, already answering the question in her head. "You don't have to do this alone. We can get you help!"

"I don't need any help. I just need you to stay as far away from it as possible, and promise that you won't follow me when I go."

"You- You're _leaving_?" Octavia said, on the brink of tears. "How can you just show up and do this to me!?"

"This wasn't supposed to happen… I know you never asked for this." Aurora said quietly, closing her eyes. She couldn't look at her companion.

"Well if you're leaving then just go!" Octavia spat, hurriedly getting out of her seat and bolting towards her room.

"Octavia!" Aurora yelled, stumbling after her in a futile attempt to reach her.

It was too late. The door slammed, and the deadbolt on the other side of the wall engaged, cutting her off from the emotional mare. She could probably pick the lock if she wanted to, but it would only raise more questions. Aurora decided to stand outside the door and fight the urge to sink down into herself and disappear. Thankfully, she wasn't given the chance.

"Hey, come over here." Vinyl Scratch called from the fire escape.

With nothing better to do than mope around outside Octavia's door, Aurora wordlessly complied, walking across their dining room floor and towards the window leading to the makeshift balcony. The floor squeaked as she walked across it, causing her to grimace and realize how heavily she was stepping.

She made her way out the window and found Vinyl Scratch standing outside, looking down at the street. It was still filled with ponies, being just late enough for the most dedicated partiers. The clock inside the apartment read about one o'clock, meaning that for many the night was still young. This held true for Vinyl Scratch as well. She looked to be completely awake.

"So what was up with all of that?" The mare asked, not bothering to turn her head towards the pony as she landed on the fire escape.

"Oh, you mean the yelling?" Aurora asked in a very jaded tone.

"No, I mean you leaving her behind all those years ago," Vinyl Scratch turned her head, her eyes hidden behind her goggles. "I don't know why she sends me out of the room. It's like she forgets I can hear everything."

"Must be tough when she brings ponies home." Aurora said idly, forcing a small smile.

"She doesn't as far as I know." Vinyl said, letting the conversation drop for a bit before continuing. "So, you wanna tell me what's going on? She saw you on the couch and freaked out. All I've got to go on is that you two used to be best friends. What happened?"

"I disappeared." Aurora replied cryptically, staring down at her own hooves.

"Where to?"

"It doesn't matter."

"It matters to her."

"I'm sure it does…"

The two ponies fell silent and stared out at the city, letting the calming sounds of the night take over their senses. Vinyl could feel the tension in Aurora's movement. It was clear that she didn't want to be there at the moment, and so an idea dawned on her.

"Come on, let's take a walk."

"What?" Aurora asked, startled by Vinyl's sudden outburst.

"You heard me. Sitting around here is just making you upset." Vinyl said. She began to head down the fire escape via the set of stairs on the back right side. She was a full flight down before Aurora started to follow her. The petite pink pony felt as though she didn't have a choice in the matter, and so she went along with the unicorns plan.

Vinyl jumped off the fire escape and onto the side walk once she reached the ground floor and began walking briskly into the night. Aurora quickly fell into step behind her, and then moved up to walk by her side. It was a few minutes before the DJ spoke again.

"I've never seen a pony fight like you before," Vinyl said sounding impressed, "Hard to believe someone so caring could be so tough."

"Caring?" Aurora asked, unsure of where the mare pulled that adjective from.

"Octavia used to tell me stories of this one friend she had as a filly. She never told me her name, or what she looked like. Just that she was always there for her when she needed it, and that even though she was vulgar, violent, and hot-headed most of the time, she was the most genuine pony she had ever met." Vinyl said reflectively. "The way her eyes were lit up tonight, there was no doubt in my mind that it was you she was talking about all those years."

"She… She really said all those things?" Aurora asked meekly, glancing back at the apartment falling behind them.

"You really do all those things?" Vinyl countered flatly, turning her gaze on the pink pony.

It was unsettling that Aurora couldn't look the mare in the eyes thanks to her goggles, but she tried to ignore it as she formulated a response. "I guess I did. Besides, the hot-headed part sounds pretty familiar."

"Yea? The way she told those stories, you two were inseparable. She'd follow you around wherever you went, even when you were doing something stupid." Vinyl said with a thoughtful smile. "I guess once you were gone, she needed to find someone equally reckless to fill that spot. That's where I come in."

Aurora didn't respond. She merely looked over at the unicorn questioningly, waiting for her to continue speaking.

"Ever since I met Octavia, she's been the voice of reason urging me to settle down. She's gotten me out of so much trouble; I couldn't even begin to list it all." Vinyl said appreciatively.

"She did the same for me." Aurora replied. "I never could understand how someone so reserved could be so persuasive."

"Reserved? It _has_ been a while since you've seen her. She has quite the temper when you push her buttons." Vinyl said, removing her goggles and looking at Aurora with her piercing ruby eyes. "That fiery spirit must have come from you."

"We both had our effect on each other I guess."

"I guess. Listen, I don't know why you left in the first place. I don't know what's keeping you from staying, or even telling her what's wrong. It isn't my right to ask you about it either," Vinyl said, making sure to grab Aurora's attention, "But you owe her more than an excuse."

Aurora looked down, stifling tears as she kept pace with the unicorn. She stopped and waited, letting the pink pony process her emotions before speaking again. "You're involved in some deep stuff, aren't you?"

Aurora nodded and Vinyl sighed. "You don't want to get her involved, and that's why you don't want to tell her anything. She's stubborn though, so I'm going to help you come up with a halfway decent lie."

"You're going to what?" Aurora asked, unsure if she heard the mare correctly.

"I'm going to help you come up with a convincing lie to tell to Octavia so she won't be mad at you. I know the difference between a pony that needs help, and one that needs her space." Vinyl said, becoming lost in her own thoughts. "The only problem I have with you is that I'm not sure which you are."

"Sometimes I don't either."

"So, give me some harmless details to go on and I'll work on something. I'll even be the one to tell her so that you don't have to. From what I heard in the kitchen, you can't lie for crap." Vinyl said with a laugh.

"It's never been my strong suit. I leave that to my partner." Aurora internally cursed herself for mentioning him.

_That bastard._

"Don't worry about it, not everyone's great at it. It makes you unintentionally honest. Look at it as a virtue." Vinyl looked away, and her tone changed. "You can't hide anything from the ponies you care about."

Aurora stared at the mare, and for the first time wondered if somepony other than her had problems too. She never asked Vinyl what was troubling her, already being weighed down by her own issues. Instead she opted to nod her head and continue following beside her, thinking about what she could divulge to the mare.

"Well, I didn't leave by choice, and I was always training or working. I was always being watched, so I couldn't come find her." Aurora said, starting as small as she could.

"Ok…did you have any family in Canterlot?" Vinyl asked. Aurora just shot her an irritated look. "I guess that's a no. You get yourself into any trouble with the law?"

"What kind of question is that?" Aurora asked with offense.

"What kind of _response_ is that?" Vinyl said, arching her eyebrow incredulously. "Dude, I've been arrested like four times. I'm the last pony who'll judge."

"Well, in that case, probably close to six times. That was before I learned my way around," Aurora said as she chuckled a bit, "They stopped catching me once I realized the guard wasn't as smart as they looked."

"Octavia know about this?"

"She did. I didn't run into too many problems after we met, but she'd still catch me on occasion." Aurora said, almost sounding disappointed in herself.

"Ok, I've got enough to work with. Just try not to get caught because I'm denying my involvement if you say I came up with it." Vinyl said with a smile, worrying the pink pony immensely.

"Ok, would you mind sharing it with me?" Aurora asked.

"That would ruin the surprise. Just improvise if she mentions it, I'll keep it vague." The pink pony was met with a mad grin and winking ruby eyes.

"I have no choice but to trust you, do I?"

"No choice but the best choice." Vinyl smiled and turned away from the mare to focus on the path ahead of her. All of a sudden the mares eyes widened and her jaw dropped. It looked as though she was attempting to scream.

Aurora looked where the unicorn was focusing and immediately caught sight of what the mare was looking at. They had walked down the block far enough to reach the end of the street, and down the block a few hundred yards was _Crescendos and Cupcakes_. The key difference Aurora noticed with the building was the front door, which was now lying in the middle of the street.

Vinyl stood frozen in place, unable to process what was going on. Aurora knew she'd be safe where she was standing, and so she bolted off towards the entrance, leaving the mare behind.

It only took a few seconds for her to reach the opening and enter the establishment, which was still supposed to be open for business. The scene before her was one of utter chaos.

The music was still pumping, but there was no DJ present at the turnstile. Just about every table and chair in the club was either broken or overturned, and both of the bars were ravaged to their breaking point. The few ponies that were still left were either frozen in fear, or doing their best to get away from the source of the disturbance; three rough looking stallions spreading the destruction across the room.

"What the _hell_ do you think you're doing!?" Aurora yelled angrily, gaining the three ponies attention swiftly.

"Ey, that's the mare we's 'sposed to look out for!" The stallion closest to her said.

"Then don't just stand there! Go get 'er!" Said the lead pony, focusing his horn at Aurora with malicious intent.

Obeying the command, the former stallion got a running start and charged the petite pink pony. Aurora didn't take her eyes off the unicorn however, watching as he charged some kind of magic projectile. The earth pony was right on top of her when the unicorn fired his shot, giving her only a second to react.

The pink pony dodged the charging stallion's strike and grabbed his mane, pulling his body with her as she moved towards the projectile. It struck the earth pony like an equine shield and he fell to the ground, leaving his comrade bewildered and angry as he prepared another bolt. Aurora didn't plan on letting him get another shot off however; she ran full speed directly at the unicorn in an attempt to cut his spell short.

His eyes went wide as the pink pony closed in, and she was just about to knock his teeth out when a heavy weight forced her away and to the side. She landed on her hooves and slid a few feet before turning her head to see what had interrupted her. The third stallion had flown into the side of her and stopped her attack. He was now standing beside the unicorn, whose spell was completely ready to fire. Just as she had the thought, bolts of magic shot out towards the petite pink pony.

Aurora ran a few feet before jumping over the bar for cover. The magic bolts kept coming, hitting the wall and raining shards of glass and high priced liquor onto the mare. She waited for a lull in his attack to leap over the top of the counter and prepare another strategy. Aurora planted her hooves on the countertop and immediately noticed the pegasus flying towards her. She quickly jumped off the bar towards the winged pony and grabbed for one of his wings, catching the aggressor off guard.

His flight path was severely altered and he came crashing to the ground behind the bar, shards of glass cutting up his back and flank, alcohol seeping into his wounds. Aurora ignored his pained screams and ran straight towards the unicorn that had evaded her strikes until now. By this point, the stallion knew what he was messing with, and was firing off random spells erratically. The confusion would make him an easy takedown.

"Aurora! What the hell!" Vinyl Scratch had finally broken out of her stupor on the street and had made it to the open door of the club. Just in time for the panicked unicorn to turn in her direction and fire a magic bolt in her direction.

"No!" Aurora yelled and dove forward to intercept the shot. The low level spell burst on her vest and sent a very uncomfortable wave of heat through the pink pony's right side.

She landed as steadily as she could and turned towards the shooter, rocketing her front hoof up to his chin. The mare's strike connected with the unicorns jaw with a sickening crack, sending his head on an upward trajectory to which the rest of his body followed. Satisfied, the pink pony turned around to find a bruised and bloodied pegasus shakily leaping from the bar and towards the door where Vinyl was standing.

Before Aurora could reach him, the stallion ran directly into Vinyl Scratch and pushed her out of his way as he took to the sky. He made it about ten feet from the ground before a bolt of green magic struck his wing, sending him spiraling towards the ground where he landed with a satisfying crash. Aurora helped Vinyl to her hooves and looked towards the source of the paralyzing shot.

Running towards the downed pegasus with a pair of binders floating to his side was a relatively fit looking unicorn with a pale green coat, green mane, and a brown vest. He reached the pegasus and swiftly wrapped the binders around both his hooves and started to disable his wings with a separate pair.

"This is the Manehattan Police Department! You're under arrest!" The pale green unicorn yelled, yielding a deep sigh of relief from Vinyl Scratch. "Are you two ladies alright?"

"Never better. Feel like rounding up the other two? They shouldn't be moving." Aurora said calmly. The officer looked at her incredulously, eliciting another sentence from the pink pony. "And yes, I'll remain here for questioning."

Without another word, the officer dragged the battered pegasus to the curb and went inside to secure the other two aggressors. Aurora decided to use this time to ask some questions of her own. She turned menacingly towards the retrained pegasus and stared him down, swearing she could hear the stallion whimper as she moved closer.

"Who the hell are you and what were you doing trashing my friend's club!" Aurora yelled, watching the pegasus intensely as he began to speak.

"Aw shit, the owner was 'sposed to be gone!" The pegasus cursed himself and looked into the earth pony's neon green eyes. "This is your fault, you know dat?"

"Explain yourself." Aurora said flatly.

"You knocked our boss around, so we was gonna knock your _club_ around, got it?" The pegasus spat rudely, motivating Aurora to slap him across the face.

"Your boss tried to drug an innocent pony! He deserved a hell of a lot more than what I gave him!" Aurora yelled, her patience with the stallion wearing thin.

"That's enough, ma'am." The officer said, returning from the building levitating the two other criminals towards the pegasus. "It looks like they made quite a mess in there. And it seems you made quite a mess of them. I'm not usually one to thank vigilantes, but I'll make an exception this time."

"I appreciate it, Officer…"

"Detective Keyes Limestone, Manehattan Police Department, 1st Division," The unicorn showed the two ponies his badge before putting it back into his vest, "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"My name's Vinyl Scratch. I'm the owner of this establishment," Vinyl said politely, turning to survey the wreckage as a frown crept onto her face, "What's left of it anyway…"

"And I'm Aurora. I'm a friend of Vinyl's. We were out for a walk when we stumbled upon the club looking like this. They were terrorizing the customers and wrecking the place."

"That's what you get for messin' with our boss!" The pegasus yelled, earning an arched eyebrow from the detective.

"Well, I'll consider that your confession." Keyes said, smiling wryly. "Anything you'd like to add for posterity?"

"You don't mess with us! Nobody crosses the Afillyates!"

"Oh, I see. You're a member of the infamous _Afillyates._" Keyes said with mock intrigue. "I'll bet a year's salary you weren't aware that being a member tripled the severity of any penalties you'd receive."

The pegasus' eyes went wide and it almost looked like he was going to cry. He never got the chance however, as the sound of rustling wings distracted him. A police chariot being drawn by two officers landed softly in the street, and a third pegasus stepped out of the back and trot towards the group.

He was an older looking stallion, his short mane a faded burgundy and his coat a soft orange color. He had shining grey eyes that looked to have been through quite a lot in his years, and yet his face was surprisingly firm looking. He looked like a well-mannered and jolly pony, simultaneously exuding professionalism with each step.

"Sergeant." Keyes said with familiarity, offering the newcomer a polite salute.

"Detective. Looks like you've got this situation handled son. How'd the perps go down?" The pegasus asked. He seemed to be the Detective's superior officer.

"I'm not sure of the specifics sir, so I'm going to call it a citizen's arrest." Keyes said, shifting his gaze towards Aurora, who merely smiled in response. "They're allegedly members of the Afillyates."

"You're much tougher than you look, aren't you miss?" The pegasus asked facetiously, offering a polite smile to the mare.

"I'd like to think so, yes." Aurora replied, doing her best to sound polite in the presence of the law.

"That's some nice gear you've got there. Looks like the stuff the capes use, don't it Keyes?" The Sergeant asked, never breaking his stare.

"That it does sir." A flash of recognition shot across Keyes' face as he examined the vest closer, causing the unicorn to watch Aurora much more closely.

"It was a gift from her family out in Canterlot." Vinyl said convincingly. "A mare should never leave home unprotected, am I right?"

"That's smart thinking, miss." The Sergeant said, his smile never faltering in the slightest. "You never can be too safe."

"Should we take them down to Central for questioning, sir?" Keyes asked.

"No, I think they've been through enough tonight." The Sergeant said, looking over the scene with concern. "We'll assign a squad to look over this sector and make sure nobody else gets riled up. If we have any questions for you two in the future, would it be alright to contact you, miss…?"

"Vinyl Scratch and yes, of course. I'll leave my home address with the detective." The mare said professionally, clearly wanting to be as thorough as possible.

"Aurora. I didn't get your name, Sergeant. If it isn't a bother…"

"Not at all, miss. I'm Sergeant Jeremiah Pace, Manehattan Police Department, 1st Division. Keyes! Load 'em up and let's get moving!" Pace turned around and offered the mares a sweet smile before departing. "You young ladies stay safe now."

Without another word, the two officers and their chariot took off into the sky with the three criminals in tow, leaving Vinyl and Aurora behind with nothing more than a wrecked club. Vinyl turned towards what was left of her pride and joy and merely fell to her flanks. There were no tears and no emotions. Just utter disbelief. Aurora moved to comfort the mare, but couldn't offer anything more than a shoulder to lean on. And that's just what the mare did. The two sat there in silence, unmoving well into the night.

* * *

"Ma'am, another group of Afillyates was arrested a short while ago after wrecking some night club down on 3rd." Said a gruff, uncaring voice.

"Well, what do you plan to do about it?" A mare asked coldly, not bothering to look at her guest.

"I assume you want to send a message. I was thinking a few broken legs, maybe a fractured horn."

"Hmm, the level of violence is appropriate, but it just sounds so…_bland._" The mare said, gears turning in her head.

"I see. I could throw one of their pegasi out a window."

"Zephyr."

"_After_ breaking their wings."

"I was almost worried for a moment. Much more fun, but maybe a little strong." The mare said, coming to a realization. "I know. Bring them their next payment in cash."

"I still prefer the panicked free-fall approach."

"And then set it ablaze. I don't want one bit to survive that inferno." The mare said harshly, almost laughing to herself.

"Not exactly violent." Zephyr said, letting the idea sink in. "Though I'm sure those low-lives would _rather_ fall to their deaths than lose a paycheck."

"They'll get the message. If that idiot can't keep his thugs in line, I've no reason to keep funding them." The mare said with a sigh, spinning around in her chair to look upon her associate.

Standing proudly before her was a very stoic looking Gryphon, more than twice her size. His piercing gaze was fixed on the mare, a mix of respect and admiration bubbling with every word that she spoke. He stared longingly at the pony before him, his vision flowing across her cool, arctic blue coat and dancing wildly around her vibrant magenta mane. She looked at him with her bright orange eyes, and the only thing that stopped him from melting then and there was fear.

"Zephyr, I've told you a thousand times. I know you're supposed to act as my bodyguard, but could you look a little less terrifying when we're alone?" The mare said almost nervously, forcing a smile. "You're much better company when you loosen up a little."

"Yes, ma'am."

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were trying to make fun of me."

"No, ma'am."

The mare spun around and eyed the Gryphon curiously. She continued to stare at him as she slowly strut towards him, her eyes becoming lustful and malevolent. Zephyr remained still and emotionless on the surface, trepidation filling his insides completely. The cool blue mare was now right up next to the Gryphon, running her hoof through the feathers around his neck. She stood up on her rear hooves and wrapped her limbs loosely around him, brushing her muzzle gingerly on his chest and up his neck, her mouth coming within a few centimeters of his. Her eyes narrowed seductively and her hot breath worked its way through his topcoat and onto his skin, causing his eyes to widen and his feathers to ruffle involuntarily.

"V-Vivian…" Zephyr managed to choke out in between stunned breaths. The pony couldn't resist a hearty laugh as she separated herself from the flustered Gryphon.

"After all these years you still haven't changed a bit, Zephyr." Vivian replied jovially, looking teasingly at the creature. "One of these days you'll man up and just take me. Until then, I'm quite content with tormenting you."

"Y-Yes, ma'am." Zephyr said, regaining his composure. He hurriedly looked for a new subject to address. "Is there anything else you require of me before I take my leave?"

"No, that will be all." The mare replied, her demeanor returning to a chilling aura.

Vivian walked towards the glass wall of her office and looked down upon the city. Her eyes wandered the skyline, but not a single building in Manehattan reached higher than where she stood. The top floor of the tallest building; she was literally on top of the world. And yet she couldn't help but feel so small.

_It's still not enough…_

* * *

**_Leave a review, hope you enjoyed!_**


	9. Intermission

_**Wow, so I hope nobody forgot about this story. So in the time it took for me to update I got a job, decided to buy motorcycle gear, fell off the bike and fucked my arm up on the way to go buy said gear, bought the gear, ate a crap-load of unhealthy food, planned out the rest of my fiscal year, and figured out where the hell I'm going with this story you're reading. So yeah, sorry for the wait. It's not that long a chapter, but it's important. I'll try to update soon with what little free time I have for you all. Forgive me you wonderful creatures...**_

* * *

Chapter 9: Intermission

"So to summarize where we're at so far," Twilight started, running through numerous details in her head, "Aurora ran away from Thundervolt after they got into a fight or something. She ran all the way to Manehattan where she met up with Pinkie and started down the inevitable path to Crazyville. Then she found her old friend, and her _new_ friend's bar was vandalized."

"And Thundervolt stopped by for _poker_!" Reggie added enthusiastically.

"My head hurts." Twilight said in frustration.

"Relax Twilight, it isn't _that_ complicated." Rainbow Dash said with a laugh.

"Ah reckon if Rainbow here can understand the plotline, then you should be fine Twi." Applejack added comically, eliciting a glare from the cyan pegasus.

"No really, my head…hurts!" Twilight said irritably, gripping her temples in her hooves and closing her eyes tightly.

"Twilight, you should go lie down somewhere. That might be the serum taking effect." Thundervolt said sternly. "Most likely in the form of a migraine thanks to your horn."

"Why are _you_ the authority on the serum?" Aurora asked, arching her eyebrow at the pegasus.

"We studied different subjects. Medical conditions fall under biology, don't they? Remind me, who never picked up a biology book?" Thundervolt asked calmly.

"I did, I just skipped to the parts about plants." Aurora said flatly. "Remind _me_ who never came within an inch of an anatomy textbook."

"Why would I need that?"

"Ask your marefriend." Aurora deadpanned. The entire room was stifling laughter as Fluttershy turned a bright red and locked up.

Thundervolt looked around in confusion. "What? What just happened?"

"The best thing I've seen in a year, that's what!" Reggie said, barely able to form a sentence through his laughter.

"Can you spell 'oblivious' darling?" Rarity asked with a teasing smile.

"What? Oh! Oh…." Thundervolt said, processing the situation rather slowly. "Aurora, I hate you so much."

The mare merely stuck her tongue out in response and smiled, causing the rest of the group to laugh with each other. Even the Thundervolt couldn't resist chuckling after seeing all their smiling faces, even if it was at his expense.

"I'm glad everyone could have a nice laugh. If my head wasn't about to split open I'm sure I'd be happy to join in." Twilight said, still holding a hoof to her forehead. "I have to go lie down somewhere _quiet_."

"I'll take you over to the next cart, Twilight." Rainbow Dash offered sweetly, moving to help the mare out of her seat.

"Thanks Rainbow Dash." Twilight said as she followed the pegasus into the next cart, leaving the rest of the group behind.

"Well we've lost some of our audience, so I think it's a good time to take a break." Aurora said as she looked around for consensus.

"I'm gonna go find the bathroom."Reggie stated, transitioning into the train car opposite the one Twilight and Rainbow Dash entered.

As he opened the door, a cart of desserts and food came abruptly rolling in, gaining the khaki unicorn's attention. What disturbed him even further however was the fact that Pinkie Pie was the one pushing the Pie, who had been standing on the other side of the room just a moment ago.

"Physically impossible food! Aw, bathroom…" Reggie was torn between the two options before making a snap decision. "Bathroom!"

The unicorn disappeared to go relieve himself and Pinkie Pie stopped the cart in the middle of the room, parking it in plain view of everypony in their seats. There were multiple sweets on the cart, including various cheesecakes, cupcakes, cookies, and tart fruits, along with the standard affair of snacks on the middle shelf, and drinks on the bottom.

Everypony got up to peruse the selection, realizing how hungry they all were almost simultaneously. Vinyl Scratch in particular found an item that caught her eye. She picked up a large piece of chocolate cake and set it down very carefully on one of the bench seats, then walked away whistling suspiciously.

Thundervolt, Fluttershy, Aurora, and Applejack had all found what they were looking for and sat back down in their places. Rarity was of course being as picky as could be, and Spike was torn between staring at the food in front of him, and the mare fighting to come to a decision.

The purple maned pony finally settled on a small piece of carrot cake before heading back to her seat. She daintily set her flank down on the seat, and was met with a loud and perturbing squish. A chill ran down the mare's spine as she shot up from her seat to find out what had happened. Smeared all across her rear end, and under her perfectly groomed tail were the dark brown remains of what once was a piece of chocolate cake.

"MY TAIL IS _RUINED_!" Rarity practically squeaked as she yelled. Her gaze darted around in every direction before finally settling on the goggle wearing mare currently laughing through her hooves. "It was _you_!"

"Oh Jeez! You should have told me you needed to use the bathroom before me!" Reggie said wide-eyed as he reentered the train car.

Rarity didn't understand what he meant until she realized he was staring at her flank, which was covered in solid brown—

"I NEED TO GO TO THE WASHROOM THIS INSTANT! APPLEJACK!" Rarity yelled, turning red as she ran past Reggie as fast as she could towards the bathroom he had just left.

"Don't ferget tah wipe!" Applejack called out, not even trying to hide her amusement as she followed the distraught mare out of the train car.

"I didn't think you'd get her back _that_ fast, Vinyl." Aurora said almost proudly. "You never did tell us what she said."

"Nothing important." Vinyl defused the subject, and turned to walk away. "I'm going to hang out in the back for a bit and get some fresh air."

"That sounds like a good idea. I'll go with you." Reggie added, falling in step behind the mare and doing well to hide the thoughtful look in his eye.

The two unicorns made their way to the caboose of the train and stepped out onto the small platform overlooking the speeding tracks passing underneath them. Not an hour ago, they had been in this same place, enacting yet another ridiculous event they would inevitably mention in conversation. I mean, how often can you tell someone that you jumped onto a moving train?

The two ponies looked at each other with knowing smiles and began to laugh, adding another story to their personal collection with one another. Vinyl pushed her goggles off her head so that they fell limp around her neck. Her ruby eyes met Reggie's magenta orbs and they gleamed. Her smile disappeared from her face as reality set in, causing her to quickly look away from the Khaki stallion and focus on the sight of the country side drifting farther and farther away.

"So, what _did_ she say?"

"Huh?" Vinyl asked, startled out of her self-induced stupor.

"What did Rarity say that made you do that to her?" Reggie sounded more curious than concerned, but Vinyl knew that he had some inkling that there was something else going on.

"She was just making fun of the way I walk." Vinyl lied convincingly. "Not refined enough for her I guess."

"Oh, okay." Vinyl was shocked at how easily he accepted her statement.

"What? Is there something wrong with the way I walk?"

"No, I just thought you said she noticed…"

"Noticed _what_?" Vinyl narrowed her eyes at the unicorn.

"The way you waddle—er, sway when you walk!" Reggie blurted out, immediately filled with embarrassment and regret that he prayed would kill him before the mare standing before him chose to.

"WADDLE?!"

"Don't get mad! I think it's cute!" Reggie yelled in a panic. His comment stopped her in her tracks.

"Cute." Vinyl sighed, and turned away as she choked back her flushed appreciation. "Dammit, Reggie."

"I…I'm sorry. I shouldn't say things like that."

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean."

"But I don't."

"Yes you do."

"Reggie."

"Scratchie."

"Reginald!"

"Vinyl, you're hands down the best liar I've ever met. That's why I'm so surprised you haven't been hiding this better…" Reggie trailed off, smiling to himself.

"What are you"—

"I'm willing to bet my life that Rarity made a crack about us sleeping together in that motel room." The stallion said bluntly.

"Eep!" Vinyl cried out, causing Reggie's eyes to widen. He pushed it aside and continued.

"I may not be the _most _observant pony on the planet, but I can tell when my best friend starts acting like…how she's acting right now." Reggie said as he gestured to the invested look Vinyl wore on her face.

The mare merely turned even more red as she looked at her companion. His normally chaotic, jittery sense of humor was nowhere to be seen, being replaced by calm analyzation. She couldn't bear to look away, and she wasn't even sure she wanted to.

"Vinyl, you feel something for me…don't you." Reggie said, more as a statement than a question. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"You never asked." Vinyl replied weakly. "So…"

"When did I start to get it?" Reggie asked preemptively.

"Yeah."

"Honestly? I thought about the possiblility as soon as you started choosing to spend so much time with me. I thought it was because Octavia was being so distant, but in retrospect"—

"She _was_ being distant." Vinyl said truthfully.

"True. I was _certain _you were trying to get me to notice you once you started being even more suggestive than usual. That combined with all the stares and blushing, which really is easy to spot with that white coat of yours, gave me a pretty decent platform to work with." Reggie sounded proud of himself.

"Impressive." Vinyl Scratch said, trying not to sound patronizing. "Well what does the great Sherlock Hooves think about all this?"

"I think that you're my closest friend, someone I can easily trust with my life. You're a pony that I truly love to be around, despite all the unnecessary problems and danger that come with you." Reggie said earnestly, looking directly at the mare. "And if I thought that I'd have _ever_ had a chance in hell with you, I'd have taken it a long time ago."

"…WHAT!?"

"I just said that"—

"I heard what you said dumbass! Come here!" Vinyl yelled fervently as she reached for the khaki stallion. She forced herself upon him and pressed her lips to his, finally realizing her relatively short term goal to romance the stallion.

She pulled away and looked to him for a response, only to find him standing there in shock, a pleased look plastered onto his face. She thought it was stupid, cute, and hilarious all at the same time, and decided that uproarious laughter would be the best response for the situation.

* * *

"I feel like I just missed something important…" Thundervolt said abruptly, cutting into Fluttershy and Aurora's idle talk.

"That's odd, I suddenly feel warm and fuzzy." Fluttershy replied, seemingly noticing the sensation at the same moment.

"Whatever you two just felt must be making me sick. I'm going to go throw up." Aurora said half seriously as she got up and left the train car, going in Twilight's direction.

Pinkie Pie and Spike had mysteriously disappeared from the car as well, leaving Fluttershy and Thundervolt alone. The mare looked over at Thundervolt who smiled back innocently, happy to see his marefriend in such a nice mood. He continued to stare as her eyes glazed over and her stare become increasingly suggestive. The mare had him pinned to the seat before he could even get suspicious.

_And he has no complaints about that…_

* * *

"Oh crap I'm gonna hurl!" Aurora said after closing the door to the train car. She hurried to an open window and stuck her head out, getting a rush of fresh air which helped immensely.

She reentered the train car and found that she was a row away from an unconscious Twilight, her cyan protector keeping watch diligently. Aurora walked over and carefully took a seat across from the pony, her magenta eyes acknowledging her presence as she settled in.

"She fell asleep a minute after she lied down. Her headache must be pretty bad." Rainbow Dash said with audible concern.

"You don't have anything to worry about, Rainbow Dash. She'll be fine. It's just a side effect." Aurora replied, attempting to reassure the mare.

"Did you have headaches after the change?" Rainbow Dash asked with doubt.

"No, I don't have a horn. For Thundervolt, it was severe soreness in his wings. I had growing pains." Aurora paused, seemingly in horror. "I _hate_ growing pains."

"So then this is supposed to happen."

"Most likely."

"Most likely?"

"Look, I'm being honest. I barely know how this serum works. I told you this before I gave it to her. If you're looking to blame someone"—

"That's not it!" Rainbow Dash said defensively, causing Twilight to stir in her sleep. The pegasus reduced her volume and continued, "I'm just worried… Twilight got hurt because of me, and you saved her life with your quick thinking. It's just…"

"This isn't your fault, Rainbow Dash." Aurora replied, knowing exactly where this conversation was headed. "It was just bad timing. Thundervolt tried to blame himself for this too. It was nothing but a stroke of bad luck, and had I not been flat on my ass I could have done something too."

"I guess so."

"I'm simply saying that you shouldn't hold yourself so accountable. What you're doing for her right now is all she could ever want. I guarantee that she doesn't care one way or another how this happened. She's alive, you're alive. That's all that matters." Aurora said sincerely, looking away pensively.

"And here I thought that Volt was the sappy one." Rainbow Dash said with a smile, earning a crooked look from the petite pink pony. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it. Besides, I'm sure she'll appreciate it once she finds her ability. If this follows the pattern, she should have some kind of additional magic ability. Something that fits her cutie mark."

"She's already powerful…I'm nervous now." Rainbow Dash said jokingly, masking the serious nature of the subject. She looked down at the sleeping mare and smiled.

"She'll be fine. She can handle herself." Aurora said, dissipating the subject. "Do you know where Pinkie got that dessert cart? I'm pretty sure if they have that, then there are bound to be more drinks on this train…"

"Drinks? Or _drinks_?" Rainbow Dash asked with an air of hopefulness.

"I like the way you think." Aurora said with a sideways smile.

"There are refreshments available to you in this direction."

"Yea, we have some water if you need it!"

Aurora and Rainbow Dash looked towards the front end of the train car and found a pair of crème colored ponies sitting next to each other. They were both earth ponies, and looked to be twins. Their coat colors were the exact same light shade, and their eyes possessed a disturbing quality that neither mare could seem to place.

The two crème' colored mares stared at Aurora and Rainbow Dash, fixing their frost blue eyes on them with zeal. Their similarly styled manes rippled in the light breeze entering through the open windows. The sparkling blue strands of hair looked restless as they repeatedly danced across the twins' faces in a truly unnerving display.

"Whoa. Creepy." Rainbow Dash whispered to herself.

"We already have access to water, thank you. My friend and I were just getting a little rowdy. I'm sorry if we disturbed you in any way." Aurora said diplomatically, taking a cue from Thundervolt's social diction.

"No, not at all! We've just been sitting here doing nothing. It's _so_ boring."

"I agree completely. You are not the only ones looking to drown a monotonous trip in liquor."

"Well I wouldn't say _drown_…" Rainbow Dash said vaguely.

"I've just become a fan of Hard Apple Cider as of late. I'm Aurora, and this is my friend, Rainbow Dash." The mare waved at the sound of her name. "What can we call you?"

The twins' looked at each other for a brief second and then answered.

"You can call _me _Ally!"

"Address me as Megan."

"Ally and Megan?" Aurora asked, getting a nod from the two ponies. "Thank you for your offer, we appreciate your kindness."

"It's no sweat, really!" Ally said with a wide smile plastered onto her face.

"It is our _duty_ to give unto those athirst of the water of life _freely_." Megan said, a small grin forming on her face. Her sister merely gasped in surprise and started laughing as she shoved the pony, ending their speech.

"Right…thanks." Rainbow Dash said, still feeling the creepy vibe emanating from the pair.

Aurora was completely aware of the disturbing aura the two ponies gave off, but something about what the mare named Megan said was keeping her interested. "Anyway, I think it's about time we get back to our friends."

"But what about Twilight?" Rainbow Dash asked, almost causing Aurora to wince. The pink pony turned to address her directly, wearing a face that was just begging the cyan mare to play along.

"She's fast asleep, so we can move her back into the other car and she won't wake up. We need you in there, and if you're watching her here then you can't really be there with us."

"Oh yeah…right." Rainbow Dash said, finally catching on. "Just help me lift her up. I'll grab her front."

"Do you two need any help with that-uh, her?" Ally asked, sounding a little too innocent for Aurora's liking.

"No, we've got her."

"Ally. Leave them be, they can handle themselves sans aid." Megan said to her sister in a chiding tone.

"Oh alright then. Be sure to come back and say goodbye!" Ally called after the two ponies, her voice barely reaching them as the door to the adjacent train car closed. "Aww, and we were just getting to know them."

"Don't trouble yourself in their affairs. We have our own task." Megan said, her gaze having shifted towards the opposite end of the car.

"I know, but it's boring…"

"That doesn't matter. You know as well as I do that this is a necessary errand."

"Yea, I know…" Ally trailed off. "Hey, can we do it again!?"

"What are you referring to?"

"The cheer! The _cheer_!"

"You're aware that it is not something as trivial as that. Stop downplaying our scripture to fit your childish mindset." Megan replied with noticeable disdain.

"I'm not childish! I'm the older twin, _remember_?" Ally argued back in a disregarding tone.

"Age is just a facet of the structured world. It has nothing to do with any level of intelligence or maturity!" Megan replied, sounding even more annoyed than before.

"Someone's mad that they're the younger sibling."

"Relish that feeling. For all intents and purposes _cling _to it. It's the only ounce of superiority you will ever possess over me." Megan said completely seriously, putting an even larger smile on her identical sister's face. Megan would never admit it, but that smile meant she had lost the argument.

She doesn't lose anything to her sister.

_Anything_.

* * *

_**Foreboding...Stay tuned, I have no idea when the next chapter will be ready. Never more than a month, I promise.**_


	10. Confrontation

_**Whoa, is that an update? I think it is. I got around to typing this around my busy busy schedule. I'm gonna go on youtube now, so enjoy the read!**_

Chapter 10: Confrontation

"Now at least I know what made me sick the second time." Aurora said as she rolled her eyes. She and Rainbow Dash had entered their train car with a sleeping Twilight in tow to find Fluttershy on top of Thundervolt in a less than innocent manner. "Could you two tear yourselves away from the other and help us out here?"

As soon the pink pony's voice cut through the air, the embracing ponies jerked away in surprise, Fluttershy blushing madly and Thundervolt landing hard on the floor. He quickly righted himself and moved to assist Aurora with Twilight, while Rainbow Dash let go and simply snickered at Fluttershy.

"You two having fun in here while everypony's gone?" The cyan mare asked mischievously.

"I-I don't know what you think you saw Rainbow Dash, but Thundervolt and I were just discussing…uh, we were talking about"—

"Animals." Thundervolt added flatly as he and Aurora set the lavender mare down on a nearby bench. "We were talking about animals."

"Mating like animals in more like it." Aurora added curtly, walking towards the back of the train. "I'm going to round everypony up. I want to finish telling this story already."

Aurora transitioned cars before anypony could follow her. She pressed on and found Applejack standing idly outside the restroom door with her head leaning towards the door. She could hear Rarity inside frantically working on making herself presentable.

"Having fun?" Aurora asked with a small smile. Applejack caught sight of her and warmed up immediately.

"Well howdy there, Rory. Can't say I'm havin' a _bad_ time…" Applejack said with a sigh as she glanced at the bathroom. "How 'bout yerself? Anything interesting happen since we left?"

"Rainbow Dash and I met some other ponies on the train. They looked to be twin mares about my age, really intense stares…everything that makes them disturbing to be around." Aurora said reflectively.

"Ain't this s'posed to be a _private_ train ride?"

"That's what I was thinking as well. If you see anything suspicious, let me know. I might be paranoid, but I'd rather be paranoid than caught off guard."

"No problem there, Rory. Ah'll be sure tah keep an eye out." Applejack said resolutely. "You gatherin' everypony up fer the rest of yer story?"

"Yes."

"Well Pinkie and Spike are over yonder, tryin' not to die." Applejack said, pointing over towards the downed desert cart. Upon closer inspection, Aurora could in fact see a two pairs of bright pink and purple limbs strewn about haphazardly, no doubt attached to a sugar filled pony and dragon. "Ah'll get them and Rarity ready fer ya. Yer friends are still in the caboose."

"Thank you, AJ." Aurora said with a nod before walking past the wreck of the _H.M.S. Diabetes_ and into the caboose.

The train car was empty, but there was another door leading out to the back platform.

_Leave_ _it to Vinyl to find the one spot on the train most like her fire escape._ Aurora thought with a smile.

She walked to end of the car and pushed open the door to find Vinyl Scratch and Reggie kissing each other. Vinyl Scratch and Reggie kissing _each other_. Vinyl Scratch _and_ Reggie _kissing_ each other. VINYL SCRATCH AND REGGIE—

"OH!" Aurora yelled on accident. She clamped her hooves over her mouth but continued screaming, muffling her voice so that it sounded like a blend between a mare in terror and a dying bear. The couple broke their kiss in terror and were bewildered when Aurora slammed the door on them and ran out of the caboose. Aurora spotted Applejack's look of confusion and ripped open the bathroom door, locking eyes with its sole occupant.

"Rarity! I need the restroom, NOW!"

* * *

***Thud***

"You should really stop doing that." Thundervolt said with concern.

***Thud* **

"Or don't, that's fine too." Thundervolt said abandoning his concern.

***Thud* **

"I don't see why she's making such a big deal out of this. What was I supposed to do, throw her off me?" Reggie asked in an attempt to defend himself.

***Thud* **

"Dude, I would have died." Vinyl Scratch replied coolly.

***Thud* **

"I'm that good a kisser?" Reggie asked enthusiastically.

***Thud* **

"No, I mean you would have thrown me off the train." Vinyl said, staring at the khaki stallion through her goggles.

***Thud* **

"Oh. I'm still good though, right?"

"STOP. Don't go there. Please, can I just finish my story so I can go throw up some more?" Aurora asked in desperate tone. She rubbed her forehead ever so slightly before looking around at the now assembled crowd before her.

"I'd like to hear about that rather than about the tail vandal and her _coltfriend._" Rarity said vehemently, turning her head up and away.

"Now I know why my parents always made such a fuss about avoiding drugs. I get injected by some strange liquid that causes headaches, I black out, and I wake up not knowing what happened while I was asleep." Twilight said, half-frustrated and half-joking.

"It's fine Twilight, you just missed me stumbling upon everypony trying to procreate. Here's a tip for all of you, next time share a room to save space!" Aurora said irritably, her light pink cheeks heating up.

"Hey now, y'all didn't find _us_ doin' anything of the sort." Applejack said defensively.

"Given another few minutes you might have been in there licking the chocolate off Rarity yourself!"

"Talk about sweet cheeks." Vinyl said with a mad grin.

"I'LL DESTROY YOU" Rarity yelled dramatically, jumping from her chair at the unicorn before being restrained by Applejack.

"Come at me then! I'll totally wreck you!" Vinyl Scratch added in an attempt to infuriate the mare further.

"Reggie, look what you did." Thundervolt said to the stallion, not taking his eyes of the scene before him. "You stuck your tongue in Vinyl's mouth and then _this_ happened."

"I don't think it's his fault. I think it's just between them." Fluttershy said idly, looking frightened by the confrontation.

"She's right; I had nothing to do with this. Nothing except being irresistible." Reggie said with a smile. That smile disappeared relatively quickly.

"You ruined my perfectly coifed tail you ruffian!"

"You made a crack at my sex life you prissy bitch!"

"Vinyl! Your sex life is nothing _but_ a crack! Sit down!" Aurora yelled, having clearly had enough of the argument. "And Rarity! Calm down; we'll go the salon when we get to Canterlot!"

The two ponies heard her but didn't seem to want to back down. Fluttershy stood up and looked at them both pleadingly. "Please stop fighting. You're scaring the children!"

Everypony in the room looked towards Spike, who was sitting next to Twilight now. "Huh? Oh, uh yeah! You guys are making me doubt my…self-esteem. I just want things to go back to the way they were?"

Twilight face-hoofed, Rainbow Dash snorted and the rest of the room just seemed to give up on the fight.

"He inherits his acting skills from his _mommy_." Rainbow Dash said, succumbing to hysterical laughter at the expense of Twilight beside her.

"I know what you mean, Dashie! Gummy inherits his sharp wit and fantastic charm from _his_ mommy!" Pinkie said, bouncing for a moment before looking sickly. "Too…_sooooon_…to bounce."

"Okay, screw you all. We went home and tried to get some sleep. The police would be showing up in the morning for questioning…"

* * *

***KNOCK KNOCK***

_Someone is going to die._

Octavia reluctantly opened her eyes at the sound of the persistent rapping on her apartment door. She removed herself from under her bed sheets and did not bother to look presentable before entering the main room.

The smell of coffee and pastries filling the apartment at the unholy hour of seven should have been surprising. However, with Pinkie visiting anything was possible. That's why it didn't surprise Octavia that Vinyl's voice was present in the kitchen speaking to her. That mare kept the oddest of hours, rarely sleeping when she was supposed to. And when she was, it usually wasn't by choice.

_I love living with an alcoholic._

Octavia made it to the door and flung it open, not bothering to hide her irritation at the fact that it was being molested. Her eyes were still largely fused together by the crust formed overnight. The fact that she had gone to bed without dry eyes hadn't helped anything. She looked a mess for the detective standing in the hallway.

_I __**really**__ love living with an alcoholic…_

"VINYL! The police are here! AGAIN!" Octavia said, not bothering to introduce herself to the pale green unicorn standing in front of her.

"A wonderful morning to you as well, ma'am." Keyes said wearily. He looked closer at the mare and tried his best to hold his tongue. It was early. She probably didn't have time to do…_anything_.

Vinyl walked into the room looking calm. Her demeanor did not stiffen when she laid eyes on the officer. Quite the opposite. She looked very happy to see him.

"Right on time, Detective Limestone." Vinyl Scratch said. She ushered him into the kitchen where Octavia now heard another voice. Aurora was still here.

Octavia didn't know how to react to that piece of information. She felt angry, and hurt, and almost insulted that she would have the audacity to stay after what she said. The relieved smile on the grey earth pony's face however betrayed those feelings. The truth was that she was glad to have another chance to talk to her. To find out what was going on.

The mare stepped into the bathroom to the left side of the door. That was when she realized how truly horrifying she looked. And _then_ she realized she had answered the door looking like that.

_That explains the look he gave me._

Octavia spent a bit freshening herself up before emerging from the bathroom a new, much less frightening mare. She walked into the kitchen and found Pinkie Pie making breakfast, monopolizing the entire kitchen as usual, and Vinyl Scratch talking to the police officer with Aurora at her side.

"What did she do, Officer?" Octavia asked nonchalantly. "Any fines? Damages? Funeral costs?"

"Har de har har." Vinyl said, with much less enthusiasm than normal. That was the first sign that something was wrong.

"Hello Octavia…" Aurora said sounding very reserved and regretful. This was also troubling.

"Officer?" Octavia asked, dropping her attempts at humor.

"My name is Keyes Limestone. I'm a Detective with the Manehattan Police Department. I was out on patrol late last night when I got a call about a disturbance coming from a local night club."

"Not the standard noise complaint I'm assuming?"

"A group of thugs were harassing the patrons and vandalizing the property. When I had arrived, I caught one of the suspects fleeing the scene. Two others were in the bar. Your friend here took care of them before I had arrived." Keyes said, nodding his head towards Aurora.

The pink pony grimaced at his mention of her, but otherwise showed no signs of any emotion.

"Was anyone hurt?"

"Ms. Scratch was bruised when she was shoved out of the way by one of the perps, but otherwise no." Keyes said with an audible sound of relief.

"I'm fine." Vinyl asserted, calming the visibly perturbed mare. "I didn't even see much. I was…distracted."

"You're always distracted, dear." Octavia said, shrugging off the mare's statement.

"Octavia?" Aurora asked meekly, sounding afraid to address her directly. "Maybe you should take Vinyl out for a walk to help her clear her head. She went through a lot last night and could use something to take her mind of it."

Octavia moved to object when Vinyl stood up and looked at her. "Yeah, that would help a lot actually…"

"Fine. Let's go then." Octavia reluctantly accepted and prepared to leave. "Pinkie? Keep our guests safe?"

"Okie dokie lokie! I'll feed them my amazing super fantastic breakfast pancakes with sugar and chocolate and strawberries and frosting and whipped cream and"—

"Go go go." Octavia whispered to Vinyl as the two made for the door swiftly.

"—_more_ chocolate and batter and cinnamon sugar swirls in every bite!" Pinkie Pie finished ecstatically, right before hearing the front door slam. "So, who wants some syrup!?"

Octavia and Vinyl descended the stairs of the apartment, in a hurry to get outside into the fresh morning air. They emerged onto the street and immediately felt the cool air as it bit into their skin. Luckily the atmosphere was lacking a breeze, keeping the temperature from getting too uncomfortable as their home city swiftly approached winter.

Vinyl took the lead and began to walk, making sure to head in the opposite direction of the club. Octavia noticed. Vinyl always made sure to pass by it during the day to make sure the A.M. staff was running it right. _Crescendos and Cupcakes_ was Vinyl's pride and joy. It was the only thing that she really put work into, other than when she played her music.

"Taking a new route today?" Octavia asked, hinting towards the matter.

"I just don't want to look at it, Tavi." Vinyl replied, sounding more tired than upset. "It's never been messed up so badly."

"I'm sure it'll be fine with a little tender love and care." Octavia said optimistically. "I'll even help out with the clean up if you want."

"I appreciate that." Vinyl gave the grey mare a sad smile. "Maybe we could enlist the help of your little house guest."

"She's not my guest she's yours, remember?" Octavia said irritably.

"Yeah, but you're the one who knows her. You're telling me she doesn't matter to you at _all_ Ms. I hug ponies on fire escapes all teary eyed?" Vinyl teased, causing the grey mare to sigh in irritation.

"She used to matter to me. Then she went and left without a word. Now she's back, and she's going to leave again. Who the hell needs her?" Octavia said, venting her frustration as she began to walk faster.

"Harsh. Aren't you the one who told me to forgive and forget?"

"Aren't you the one who needs to stop pushing this?"

"You don't have to bite my head off to get my candy center, sweet stuff." Vinyl teased, serving to enrage the mare further. "I'm just trying to help out here."

"Well it isn't helping, but you're right; I shouldn't bite your head off. I don't want to ingest whatever filthy things are floating around in that head of yours." Octavia said, turning around to face her friend. She couldn't see her eyes thanks to the goggles, but Vinyl Scratch's attitude immediately changed.

"Calm down, Tavi. There's no need to get so hostile. I'm just trying to"—

"You're doing nothing but trying to make me angry! I don't need this right now, so why don't you just stop!?"

"No, why don't you quit your bitching?" Vinyl said angrily. "I'm going out of my way to make things right between you and your friend, and you're just jumping on me like it's my fault you couldn't do that yourself!"

"Shut up."

"No, I don't think I will. Your friend in there is messed up right now, and she doesn't seem to have a way out of it. She wants to keep you safe and there you are treating her like she's the worst pony you've ever met!"

"She's been lying to my face this whole time. She had been for years about what she was doing when I wasn't around. Maybe it's time I just cut her off before she hurts me anymore." Octavia's cold statement caught Vinyl off guard.

"Cut her off? Shit Octavia, you'd seriously do that to someone who you thought was your best friend? It's great to know that I'm treading on some seriously thin ice here." Vinyl took a few steps away. "Maybe I should watch what I say."

"Perhaps you should. At least then I wouldn't have to constantly get you out of trouble when you run your mouth."

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Vinyl retorted accusingly. "You're not the sweet and caring pony I call my friend. You're an asshole!"

"Well if I'm an 'asshole' then you're nothing but a forlorn piece of excrement lying on the sidewalk." Octavia said venomously.

"Fuck you!" Vinyl said, turning away from the mare and running across the street.

Octavia didn't try to follow her. She was too shocked to do so. She'd never managed to drive Vinyl away from an argument before. She'd previously thought it to be impossible. An almost immediate pang of regret sounded in Octavia's head, just a second before the wave of guilt washed over her and she realized what she'd done.

She'd been angry at the mare before, but never like this. Openly insulting her and yelling at her were things Octavia had never even considered doing before. Now it was too late to do anything about it until Vinyl came back of her own accord. She had run off, and she was much faster on her hooves than Octavia could ever hope to be.

Octavia stood rooted in the same spot for what seemed like a millennia, just thinking. She thought about Vinyl mostly, but got to thinking about something else. Or namely some_pony_ else.

Aurora being there now had brought up so many emotions. The biggest one it seemed was anger though, if she was judging based on her reactions to recent events. Thankfully she hadn't yelled at Pinkie Pie. Nobody needed to see her upset. Vinyl would be back soon, and Aurora would take it in stride. Not that she really cared how she took it.

_Shut up Octavia; don't say things like that…_

The longer she stood there on the street, the worse she began to feel. She had no right to get mad at either of them. And in getting mad at them, she was doing nothing to improve the situation. She felt hurt, and she was lashing out at the ponies she cared about.

_What an excellent system for coping. You completely deserve to have them around._

Octavia started walking in an arbitrary direction to take her mind off everything. She walked and walked and kept on walking until she no longer had the choice.

* * *

"That didn't look very good." Thundervolt said to himself.

The streets below him were filled with ponies oblivious to the argument that had just unfolded. Two of the ponies that seemed to have taken Aurora in had just gotten into a fight and the white one had run off. She was the one that had been talking to Aurora the most, and so she was the one he needed to follow.

With a quick jump Thundervolt rose into the air and began to glide in the direction the white mare had run in. The stallion scanned the city block looking for any sign of her, but wasn't finding much. Despite the urgency of the situation, his mind still had a chance to wander.

_Aurora always finds a way to get herself into trouble. She's involved with the police now. I don't know whether or not I should let Keyes know about her. Then again, he's probably already made the connection. I'll have to check in with him soon to confirm my suspicions._

Thundervolt continued flying, trying desperately to catch a glimpse of the goggled mare. It was about a minute later that he saw her walking down the street at a standard pace, rather than running. That was his cue to land and follow her on hoof.

The pegasus touched down and fell into step a ways behind her, working his way efficiently through the crowd. Though he walked with purpose, he made sure to keep his stance as casual as he could. Thundervolt looked to be nothing more than an ordinary citizen walking the streets.

_An ordinary citizen in a combat vest._ _You should really take this thing off more often._

Thundervolt frowned a bit as he realized she would easily notice him in his current attire. It was too late to remedy that now however, as he found the mare glancing back at him warily. He knew that at this point she wasn't going to believe he wasn't following her. Thundervolt smiled at her in a friendly way and kept pace with her as she quickened her retreat.

The mare passed by a few openings in the buildings but kept herself on the main street for a decent stretch. About a hundred yards down the block she turned into an alleyway and vanished from sight. Thundervolt proceeded with caution and followed her. Stepping into the shaded hallway, he saw the mare waiting for him about halfway down the corridor.

Thundervolt approached her as non-threateningly as he could. "Hello." He said with a smile.

"What do you want?" Straight to the point.

"I wanted to say hello, and I just did." Thundervolt replied cheekily.

"Well that's just peachy. Now why don't you turn around and walk away, before you say hello to my hoof?"

"Is she causing you trouble?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Aurora. Is she causing you trouble?" Thundervolt asked again, deciding to forgo the caution in this instance.

"I should have guessed you knew her. She mentioned a partner, and you're wearing the same kind of clothes." Vinyl said, slowly sounding less hostile.

"She mentioned me?" Thundervolt asked in surprise before catching himself. "I mean, yes. I work with her."

"She also mentioned leaving a bad one-night stand." Vinyl pushed, causing the stallion to choke on his own saliva. "Well I can see where this is going."

"Can you now?" Thundervolt asked, genuinely curious.

"Sure. You're both in deep shit and you pissed her off, so she left. You want her to come back so you can be in deep shit together."

"Surprisingly accurate. I'll amend my previous question. Is she alright?"

"She's been drugged, attacked, and emotionally scarred in the window of about twenty four hours, so I'm assuming she's doing great." Vinyl said sarcastically. "What do you want?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why are you following me? Shouldn't you be watching her if you're so concerned? I left her back at the apartment with the fuzz."

"You're right; I really should be keeping an eye on her. But I saw you arguing with that mare and figured I'd see if you're ok."

"Why the hell would you do that?" Vinyl asked

"Well, it'd give me an excellent chance to ascertain how threatening you are. Not to mention all the details you may end up giving me about this situation when your emotions cause you to slip." Thundervolt said, causing the mare to look at him with shock plastered across her face. "But really, all I wanted to do is see if you're ok. I don't like it when ponies are upset, and the happier you are the happier Aurora will be to hang around you."

"You're a piece of work."

"Thanks."

"I'm fine. Just angry. And your friend isn't causing me trouble. She's just dealing with some stuff."

"What kind of stuff?"

"The kind of stuff you would know about if you knew her I'd imagine." Vinyl said, being careful not reveal anything to the stranger.

"I've only known her for about twelve years. She had a life before me I'd imagine."

"Why don't you ask her about it yourself?"

"Because she doesn't know I'm here."

"She will soon." Vinyl said threateningly.

"I figured as much. I'll have to keep a greater distance from this point on, but it was worth it to find out she's in the hands of somepony so adamant about her safety."

Vinyl didn't know how to respond to that. She simply looked at the stallion as he prepared to leave.

"Don't stay mad at your friend. It isn't worth the anger. It never is."

"You never told me your name."

"I didn't plan on it." Thundervolt said in response. "I'd really appreciate it if you didn't mention this to her. And try to keep her out of trouble for me. She'll find it anyway, but you know…give it your best effort."

Thundervolt flew up and out of the alleyway hurriedly, having spent far too much time conversing with the mare. He thought about it and decided that he couldn't be watching the apartment any more. It was too close, and she could've spotted him earlier. Now that she's most likely going to know he's in town, she'll be on the lookout constantly.

_I'll have to find another way to keep tabs on her. Maybe I could get Keyes to help out. Regardless, I need to get back to Reggie's. I've exposed myself too much today, and I could use some rest._

The stallion adjusted his course towards the Doodle Corp. building and sped away in search of a place to lay his head.

* * *

_**Will Vinyl tell Aurora of her encounter with Thundervolt? Is Octavia safe in the middle of Manhattan without the aid of her friends? Will Aurora and Keyes get Diabetes from Pinkie Pie's cupcakes?**_

_**...**_

_**Yes, probably not, and I'm not gonna write about it so you decide! See you next chapter, leave a comment!**_


	11. Missing

Chapter 11: Missing

"Why the fuck did you think to bring 'er down here!?"

"The fuck was I _'sposed_ to bring 'er!?"

"Not fuckin' here you prude!"

"Mmrmmph _mrmrmph_!"

"Quiet!"

"You're killin' me here, you aware of that?"

The previously enraged stallion took a few steps away in an attempt to calm himself down. Here he was trying to run an organization smoothly, while all his employees were screwing everything up. It didn't help that he was basically still the _new_ boss.

The Afillyates were a shit organization. Everybody seemed to know that except its members. And Silver. Silver knew that. Being in charge, that should make him seem responsible, and in the eyes of the public it did. But that didn't matter to him. It took him about a year to take the Afillyates from a feared street gang to a semi-reputable saboteur service.

A service that just so happened to 'employ' more than its fair share of horny, drunken idiots thanks only to tenure. Idiots like the two standing before him with a kidnapped mare in between them, who was looking completely distraught and disheveled. There wasn't really any other way she _should _look though. Silver didn't want to meet the pony that was alright with getting taken.

"Look, just get the fuck out of here. I have to figure something out." Silver said, shaking his head in frustration.

"Okay, yous' the boss." One of the thugs said.

"Yer comin' with us." The other commanded to the restrained mare.

"You can forget that. I don't want her gettin' mistreated by you heathens. Leave her here with me." Silver said, looking the grey mare in the eyes with muffled concern.

The two stallions left wordlessly, closing the door to Silver's Office. The stallion let out an exasperated sigh.

_I work so hard. Why must it be like this _every_ day?_

"I'm going to undo your bindings. Will you let me do that?" Silver asked as calmly as he could to avoid frightening the mare. She responded with a fervent nod of the head.

Silver stepped forward and produced a small knife from his coat pocket. This was a brilliant move on the part of someone trying to keep a prisoner calm. The mare reacted rather poorly to the tool and pressed herself up against the closed door of his office in a panic.

"Pete's sake— I'll do it without the knife!" Silver said loudly. He flung the knife across the room where it embedded into a small dartboard hanging from the wall. "Nineteen. Could've been worse."

With a shrug of his shoulders, Silver got to work removing the handkerchief tied around the mare's mouth and the rope surrounding her upper forelimbs. It only took about a second of freedom for the captive to try and beat Silver's face in.

The mare flung her forehooves up in an attempt to knock him away, but Silver had already stepped backwards to give her some space. She tried to get out the door, which wouldn't budge, and that's about when she realized that there weren't any windows in the room. She was stuck.

"Let me out." She demanded in a low, angry tone.

"You have some fight in you. I wish that wasn't the case, because you'll just end up creating more work for the both of us." Silver replied the tone and accent of his voice changing considerably.

"Your voice"—

"Oh you noticed, how observant." Silver said with a smile. "I'm not a hard-headed thug. I just happen to be in charge of a few."

"Well your _thugs_ took me off the street! Let me leave before I call the police!"

"I'm just as mad about this as you. Do you think I want to have to fix this? I'd rather be doing something a little less frustrating. Tell me, what's your name?"

"Piss off."

"It's nice to meet you, Piss off. My name is Silversmith, though everyone and their grandmother calls me Silver. I'm _technically_ the leader of this association, the Afillyates."

"Are you going to let me go or not?"

"I can't. I don't really want to be brought up with any kidnapping charges." Silver said coolly. "I just can't be turning you loose just yet."

"Well what are you planning on doing then?" The mare asked nervously.

"I'm going to treat you like a lady being kept against her will of course. What would you like for supper?"

"Freedom."

"I'll try to find some of that, but for posterity do you have a second choice?"

The mare fell silent, letting the conversation fall to the floor. It was just as well, as it wasn't getting either pony anywhere. It was unfortunate to say the least. A mare as pretty as she didn't deserve to be taken against her will. She was like a delicate flower that had been uprooted and jostled about.

_I'll have to tend to her, make sure that this one doesn't wilt._

Silver opened up a slot on the door and spoke with somepony on the other side before closing it up again and walking towards his desk. The mare took the time to look around the room while everything was quiet.

No windows, one door, a simple wooden desk, and multiple filing cabinets made the room feel rather bleak. It was definitely not something you would expect of a criminal organization. She expected more extravagant décor, and perhaps some kind of weaponry hanging from the walls. The only things decorating the space were a few framed pictures of various locations, the impaled dartboard, and a shiny silver plaque engraved with text she couldn't make out.

She turned her purple eyes on the pony before her and took in his appearance. She wanted to be able to recall his every feature. She started with his coat color, a very metallic grey sans any sheen. His mane and tail were a slightly darker shade, resembling the color his nickname implied. His eyes were a hazel color, with specks of brown littered in between.

He wore a light brown duster over his body, which covered his cutie mark for the time being. As she observed however, he removed it, revealing what looked to be a steadily rising line graph. It was an odd cutie mark to say the least, but considering the nature of the marks, she didn't bother questioning it.

"I took the liberty of ordering you a second set of my dinner. I'm used to more refined and cultured food, but I can't seem to stay away from this city's turnip melt. It's immaculate." Silver said, smelling the air as he imagined his meal. "I hope you've enjoyed profiling me, as it won't get you anywhere. I'm not _really _guilty of anything, as you're about to become aware."

"Go on."

"I didn't take you. I'm not forcing you to stay here. I'm only offering you dinner as I tell you that it would unwise for you to try and leave this building filled with drunken morons who like to harass young mares like yourself. Do feel free to try…"

"Octavia." The mare said, finally offering up some form of identification.

"Octavia Philharmonica Pie? Of the Manehattan Collective Orchestra, First seat in the String Section?" Silver said, raising his eyebrow hopefully.

"You know me." Octavia said in a surprised tone.

"I know your cello. Beautiful instrument, a Saddlevarius if I'm not mistaken?"

"Yes."

"Excellent. I'd love to hear it another time. Right now, I'm grappling with what to do with you."

"And of course you can't let me go because that's _far_ too much trouble."

"Yes, but so is every other option. My employer is going to be furious with me. I've already lost one payment, I can't afford to let her find about you." Silver brought his hooves up to his chin.

"If you wanted to ask me?" Octavia leaned forward, trying to be casual.

"Go ahead."

"I'd just let me go and try to deal with the police. I'm sure you could skate by with them and it'd be much easier than what's coming." Octavia said with confidence.

"Oh? What exactly should I be worried about?"

"Just an old friend of mine who'll be mildly concerned once she finds out I'm gone."

* * *

"Where the _hell_ is she!?" Vinyl asked, angry at seemingly everything.

"What are you talking about?" Aurora asked, turning to find Vinyl Scratch entering the apartment. "Where is who?"

"Octavia, who else!?"

"You could've been talking about _ME_!" Pinkie Pie said, popping up on Vinyl's periphery.

"Besides, she was with you. You two were gone for hours, I had assumed you two spent the day together." Aurora said sounding confused. "Is that not the case?"

"No! She was being a royal pain in the ass…" Vinyl scowled. She removed her goggles, set them on the coffee table and let out a deep sigh. "So she didn't come back?"

"No. I haven't heard a word from either of you all day, and Detective Limestone left a short while after you." Aurora replied, looking concerned. "I'm going to go find her."

"It's a huge city, good luck. Let her come back on her own." Vinyl sounded almost spiteful.

"I can't just sit here. I'll see you both later." Aurora sprung out of her seat and ran for the door, heading out of the apartment urgently. She sounded extremely worried.

"I don't know why she's so upset, it's not like she got kidnapped or anything." Vinyl snapped.

"But what if she did? Wouldn't that make you a big dumb meanie face? And _wrong_?" Pinkie Pie asked with evident concern.

"…shit." Vinyl took a breath and looked at the door. "What do you think the odds of that are?"

"Scratchie." Pinkie Pie scolded the mare.

"Fine, I'll see if I can get some help." Vinyl said reluctantly, as she turned to make her exit. "It's not like she really needs any!"

The white mare left the apartment, leaving Pinkie Pie there all by herself. Pinkie didn't really know what to do at the moment. She'd already managed to destroy the kitchen once, so it was probably a good idea to leave that alone for the time being.

"Aw shoot, what am I supposed to do here all by myself?" Pinkie Pie asked nopony in particular. "Hey! Vinyl forgot her goggles!"

Pinkie Pie lifted the goggles off the table and looked them over. She had never had the opportunity to observe them so closely, seeing as how Vinyl never took them off around her. Or anypony for that matter. The brilliant purple frames had an different shade in the lenses when held up to the light, and the metallic blue frames only served to brighten their image.

They were a very pretty set of eyewear, which was to be expected, considering the mare's attachment to them. Pinkie knew that Vinyl was a lot more worried about Octavia than she let on thanks to the fact that she'd left them behind. Pinkie knew what to do.

"I'm gonna go find Scratchie and return her goggles! I'll bet she'll love that!" The bright pink mare said excitedly.

She followed the other two mares out the door after a few moments, locking the door before closing it. She reached the ground floor of the apartment complex and stopped in her tracks, a rogue thought entering her mind.

_Did I leave the oven on?_

* * *

"Well, _did_ she?" Twilight asked.

"It's Pinkie. Of _course_ she did." Rainbow Dash responded, turning to address the hyperactive pony. "Isn't that right, Pinkie."

"That was the funny explosion!" Pinkie responded jovially.

"You decimated the kitchen." Vinyl Scratch deadpanned.

"But the cake that went everywhere drew a smiley face on the wall!" Pinkie Pie snorted with laughter at the very mention of the impromptu mural.

"Yea, that _was_ pretty cool." Vinyl conceded, a small smile escaping onto her face.

"I thought the shrapnel was more interesting. I never realized the destructive capability of an oven before that." Aurora replied almost seriously. The rest of the room was laughing at that, now discussing the petite pony jury-rigging ovens all over the world.

"So we've got the three of ya'll headin' in different directions." Applejack said, breaking everypony out of their laughter. "Who're we followin' first?"

"Might as well start on Reggie's end. That's where I ended up." Vinyl looked over towards the khaki stallion. "Besides, I'd like you all to hear how stupid this guy really is."

"Oh for the love of"—

* * *

—"Celestia, Thundervolt! Would you announce yourself when you come in! You almost scared me half to death." Reggie yelled at the pegasus, trying desperately to slow his heart rate. "Skulking around my home like a serial murderer."

"Sorry. I would have sent you a message, but wireless communication hasn't really made it out there yet." Thundervolt replied cheekily.

"I told you I know of at least three ponies besides myself who're working on it. Nopony can seem to land a contract, it isn't our fault!"

"Calm down, that's not why I'm here. I was wondering if you had a spare bed I could use."

"Nope, you're going to have to climb into mine and _snuggle_." Reggie said seriously, looking the stallion dead in the eye.

"You'd like that wouldn't you?" Thundervolt said with a calm smile. "You're always trying to lead unsuspecting stallions to bed, aren't you?"

"Shut up, there's another bed in the room across from mine." Reggie said giving in, unable to keep the charade going comfortably.

"Thanks, I appreciate it. One more thing." Thundervolt turned to look at the stallion. "Is Limey around? I need to talk to him."

"He was here earlier today, and he mentioned something about stopping by later to talk to me. Stick around and I'm sure you'll get a chance to speak to him." Reggie said, looking eager to move onto a new subject. "So, wanna see something cool?"

"It's why I know you in the first place. What've you got?" Thundervolt said as he followed the stallion up the stairs to the third floor of his workspace.

"I've got something really cool."

"Ok, what is it?"

"It's this!" Reggie stopped beside a large, off-white cube about his size and gestured towards it happily.

"What the hell is it?" Thundervolt asked, not understanding.

"It's a three foot tall block of plastic explosives!"

Thundervolt's pupils constricted. He took about five steps backwards and started to hide near the stairwell. Reggie frowned slightly and walked towards the pegasus with a calm expression.

"Aw c'mon, it isn't dangerous in this state. It needs a controlled electrical charge and a primer to detonate. The way it is right now, you could do anything you want to it!" Reggie explained. He sauntered over to the large block and looked cheekily at Thundervolt.

He reared back on his front legs, coiled his body, and then put all his force into his hind legs. His rear hooves smashed into the cube doing nothing but leaving a few hoofprints. The explosives didn't explode, but Thundervolt's heart almost did. Now visibly recovering from the trauma, the pegasus walked onto the floor with his khaki companion.

"So you're saying electricity sets these things off?" Thundervolt asked with curiosity, his wings at the back of his mind.

"Well yes, but it has to be a specific amount of voltage. A rogue static shock won't do anything. I'm not sure about high voltage though, so don't go shocking them with power lines."

"Huh." Thundervolt smacked the cube himself and was shocked at the feel and texture of it. It was pretty enjoyable.

"You wanna hit it some more, don't you?" Reggie asked excitedly.

"Hell yeah I do!"

* * *

"You're idiots." Aurora said.

"That's what Keyes said." Reggie replied.

"Well, that's _sort of_ what Keyes said…" Thundervolt trailed off.

* * *

"Are you two trying to kill yourselves!?"

The pegasus and the unicorn stopped attacking the cube of explosive plastic and turned to find their pale green detective friend watching in horror from the stair well.

"Hi!" Reggie said with a mad smile.

"I should put you in jail!"

"It isn't explosive like this."

"E-Explosive?" Keyes asked, clearly confused. "Isn't that a solid block of cocaine?"

"It's a solid block of unprimed plastic explosives." Reggie answered simply.

Keyes charged his horn up and looked at Reggie very seriously. "Let's see the permit for that. I find it hard to believe that you'd be able to acquire that amount of explosives for _any_ project."

"You're absolutely right Keyes, however _I _didn't get a hold of this beauty, the company did. They've been working on some kind of mining project and needed a place to keep the explosives." Reggie said.

"And they put it here?"

"I offered, I mean how often do you get to see something this awesome up close?"

"You're bludgeoning something volatile. You must have a death wish."

"Weren't you listening Keyes? It's stable like this." Thundervolt cut in. "Just let it go for now, I need to talk to you about something."

"That's fine. I have something I'd like to discuss with you as well." Keyes replied. "We'll go into one of the spare rooms downstairs."

"You guys can't talk up here?" Reggie asked in a confused tone.

"It's a sensitive matter, Reggie. I'll fill you in once we work it out." Keyes dismissed the stallion, ushering Thundervolt down the stairs. "Don't worry, it's nothing personal."

"Of course. I'm not offended at all…" Reggie said, hiding his disappointment poorly.

"That's the spirit buddy!" Thundervolt added before disappearing down the stairs with Keyes in tow.

The two stallions quickly made it back to the first floor and entered the room Thundervolt was set to spend the night in. Keyes shut the door behind them and turned to face Thundervolt, sizing him up for a moment before starting his inquiry.

"I'm aware you also have some things to say, but I'd appreciate if you'd let me do the talking for now."

"That's fine. What do you want to know?" Thundervolt asked, shifting to a more serious tone of voice.

"I'm not going to bother questioning where you came from, or what you've been involved in in the past. I won't get a straight answer if I do." Keyes began. "I simply want you to connect a few dots that have swirling around in my head as of late."

"Understood."

"There's been a recent spike in crime here in the city, resulting in increased patrols. I've been drafted by the Manehattan Police Department into going on some of these extra patrols. Last night I met a very curious pony at the scene of a disturbance." Keyes said. He looked over towards the pegasus before continuing. "She was very gifted a fighter for someone her size, and she was also very withdrawn in comparison to some other tough ponies."

"What does she have to do with anything?" Thundervolt asked, sounding mildly curious.

"You mentioned something about keeping watch over a friend, correct?"

"I did."

"How was your view of my conversation with her from the south side window?" Thundervolt remained silent in response. "You can save the act. You two wear the exact same clothing, and according to her associate, she mentioned a partner."

"And what of it?" Thundervolt asked, sounding almost defensive.

"I want to know just how many of you are out there. You two aren't your average everyday ponies, and you're certainly not with any organization I know of." Keyes asked suspiciously. He scrutinized Thundervolt's facial expressions as he spoke.

"It's only her and I, and we're no longer a part of this organization you're referring to."

"A free agent is even _more_ dangerous. How am I supposed to trust that you and she aren't up to something of your own accord?"

"You're not." Thundervolt said simply. "You can only take my word for the fact that I'm not planning anything. The rest is up to how paranoid you really are."

"You're treading a thin line here. What makes you think you're so immune to any consequences?"

"The consequences of my actions are things _I_ have to live with. They won't be brought forth by some big-shot detective working for the city police." Thundervolt said irritably. "I'm not doing anything, but even if I was, you couldn't stop me."

"You're only antagonizing me here. It's like you want me to take action."

"I don't want you taking action. I want you on your toes. Trouble follows my partner and I around, and so the more prepared you are for something to go wrong, the better." Thundervolt said. "If you're done, I'd like to get into bed. It's been a long day."

"I was under the impression you wanted to ask something of me."

"I was going to ask if you wouldn't mind keeping tabs on Aurora for me. I can't get close any longer thanks to my little run in with the mare from the apartment. Seeing as how I can't be trusted however, I'll have to go about it a different way."

"Perhaps we could come to an agreement?" Keyes said, sounding thoughtful.

"I'm listening."

"I could keep my eye on the apartment, and your friend for you. Pass by on my patrols; make sure everything is in line."

"Yes?"

"And you could help me with something."

"Something like _what_?" Thundervolt asked curiously.

"Something that I've wanted to do for a while, but haven't found a good enough cover for breaking the law to do it."

"Limey, you've come to right pony."

* * *

_I think this is the place. Sheesh, how long has it been since I've seen him last?_

Vinyl stared wordlessly at the door in front of her. Here she was, in the middle of the night, standing in front of the supposed residence of an old friend. One she hadn't spoken too for a long time. Granted it was for good reason, but it was still odd coming by. Especially to ask a favor.

_Knock. You've been standing here for too long._

The mare pounded on the door perhaps a little harder than she should have. Vinyl could have sworn she heard a pair of voices cease after she knocked, but decided to pay it no mind. She exercised some patience and waited until she heard hoofsteps heading towards door.

With a few small clicks, the latch and deadbolt on the door were disengaged, and the door swung inward to reveal a khaki stallion with magenta eyes standing on the inside of the room.

"Vinyl? That is you! Oh wow…"

"I know, It's been a while Reggie." Vinyl said awkwardly as she looked into the stallion's eyes.

"Please, come in! No need for you to be standing out in the hallway." Reggie said, ushering the mare into his residence. "I almost didn't recognize you without your goggles. I don't think I ever saw you without them before now."

"My wha— Oh, I must have left them at home." Vinyl said uncomfortably.

"I'm sure they'll be fine. So tell me, what are you doing here? I mean, I'm not complaining, it's just so…"

"Unexpected?"

"Overdue."

"I know. I'm sorry; you know I would have stopped by if I could have."

"I'm sure. That doesn't matter though, you're here now." Reggie said with a genuine smile.

"Right…Listen, Reggie? I actually came by to ask you for help, not to catch up." Vinyl said, quickly adding an afterthought. "At least not this minute."

"Of course, whatever you need."

"Octavia didn't come home tonight, which doesn't happen. Ever. I'm starting to think that maybe she ran into some trouble…" Vinyl explained, sounding a bit more frantic than she would have liked. "Is there any way you can help look for her?"

"Definitely. I'll put word out that she's missing immediately. Anyone related to this company will know to be looking for her in a matter of hours." Reggie said proudly.

"Wow, seriously? How do you plan to do that?" Vinyl asked, clearly impressed.

"I'll put out a memo. Ponies tend to pay attention to those when they see the label 'Chief Shareholder', if you know what I mean."

* * *

"Chief WHAT!?" Rarity yelled, catching everypony off guard.

"Shareholder." Fluttershy replied quietly, seemingly unfazed by the mare's outburst.

"I heard him, Fluttershy!" Rarity said dismissively, moving her gaze around the room. "Did nopony think to inform me that I was sitting beside the owner of the most prominent corporation on Equestria's eastern half!?"

"Nope." Vinyl said simply, looking directly at the unicorn with disdain.

"Meh, I don't think it's that important to the story." Reggie said, shrugging his shoulders.

"He's right, it isn't. I'm going to skip ahead to the part that matters, if you don't mind." Aurora cut in, looking at the trio.

All three ponies supplied nods of approval.

"Ok, so there _I_ was roaming the streets like an idiot…"

* * *

_**Hey there everyone. Sorry for being late. Then again, I never said when I'd update, so screw y'all. Here's another chapter that I hope will last you until the next one. I have finals, and projects, and shit to be doing that isn't this, so don't hold your breath for an update. I'd imagine it being published in around two weeks, maybe three. I love you all, and you love me. So just chill out, and it'll be here before you know it. You should all motivate me by reviewing this chapter. It makes me warm and fuzzy, and makes my hands want to type.**_


	12. The Search

Chapter 12: The Search

_Vinyl wouldn't have gone towards the club. That means they would have traveled in this direction. Assuming they did, she'd have a few hours head start into the city. _

Aurora stopped.

_Damn it all, I don't know where to go!_

The large city block loomed before the mare and filled her with a sense of unshakable dread. Aurora didn't like cities. Her disdain for the establishment was only worsened thanks to her overwhelming fear for Octavia. Granted, she'd been living in this city for a good part of her life. That probably meant she could take care of herself. It also meant that she would walk these streets feeling comfortable.

_A mare can't afford to feel comfortable these days._

Aurora didn't want to think about what could be happening. It just so happened that she didn't have a choice. She didn't want to admit it, but Thundervolt had always been right about her one-track mind. If not that, then he pegged her for her inability to calm herself down. Aurora hated it when Thundervolt was right.

The petite pink pony proceeded down the street, heading for the heart of city. There would lay the commercial district, the fashion district, and the music district. Any of those places could be close to Octavia's heart in one way or another, so perhaps she fled there. Aurora didn't know the terms by which Octavia left Vinyl Scratch, but judging by the mares demeanor back at the apartment, it wasn't good.

She couldn't imagine what would have set her off. Octavia was a very patient mare. Then again, this wasn't exactly a good time for her to be exercising it. Aurora had just fallen back into her life, stirring up a million feelings. If she was lucky, one of those feelings was positive.

_One._

Octavia and Vinyl arguing didn't seem right. It didn't take a genius to figure out that the two were best friends. They had this inexplicable sense of belonging to one another, as if the refined cello playing mare and the rowdy DJ pony were some kind of social archetype fit for use in a novel. After all, the contrast made for a very exciting character dynamic.

_Stay on track Aurora, find her._

The pink pony diverted her attention towards the rooftops. She had just made the effort to come down to the street, and yet felt that height held the advantage. It also occurred to her that a small mare in a combat vest prowling the tops of buildings wouldn't look good to the public. For the time being, she'd stick to the ground.

Letting out a nervous breath, Aurora pushed forward and walked along the road at a brisk pace. She was searching, not saving. There wasn't a need to waste her energy until she knew exactly where she was going, or what was going on.

_Pacing is everything…_

And so Aurora paced herself. She continued to pace herself for her entire walk into the city's center. With each step she figured that she could increase her speed ever so slightly, just in case Octavia was in danger. By the time the pink pony made it to the marketplace, her walk had become a full gallop.

Every hoof impacted the ground, sending deep vibrations through the mare's tight and convulsing chest. She was supposed to pace herself. She was panting and completely out of breath. She was supposed to be inconspicuous. There she was, running through the bustling city night clad in survival gear. She was supposed to be calm. Her nerves were wracked.

Aurora's eyes searched around the marketplace, looking from stall to stall, at stores, vendors, clubs; everything the night had to offer. Though still plenty crowded, the scene gave off an aura of emptiness, as if those still milling around were merely apparitions in the pink pony's nightmare. Distant voices filled her head and movement caught her attention at every turn. It seemed as though the shadows began to dance seductively around the objects that cast them.

_Pull it together Aurora…_

The darkness of the night contrasted the many lights still bathing the street in their glow. The sight was almost unsettling, and the colors began to blend into one another. Aurora spun around and around, desperately searching for something to pull her out of her ordeal. A flash of white caught her attention and she practically dove for it before she saw it was merely another false beacon.

_Damn it…Damn…_

Anxiety…something familiar and yet unknown for years plagued the helpless mare. No matter where she looked, no matter what she did, nothing could pull her from her hole. The sheer terror building within Aurora's body was almost too much for her to bear, but she had no choice. She hadn't been so emotionally distraught since she was a child. Since the _first_ time she lost her.

"Excuse me, but are you alright?"

"AAH!" Aurora started violently and whipped around defensively.

Her eyes were desperate and nervous, but began to calm when she realized that somepony was speaking to her. Slowly being drawn back into the real world, Aurora's breathing slowed to something of a panicked wheezing. She tried to look at her caller and found her vision to be less than reliable. The pink pony wiped would-be tears from her eyes and tried to focus.

A cool blue mare with a magenta mane was standing a few feet away looking arbitrarily concerned, as though she didn't really care, but had nothing better to do than ask. Her bright orange eyes seemed scrutinizing, and simultaneously full of contempt. She was unsettling to say the least, but she had asked a question. Aurora didn't know why she felt she should answer.

"I…I'll manage." Aurora said as a courtesy, rather than a confession. "I should be going."

"I recognize a panic attack when I see one. I may not look the type, but I'm actually very capable of dealing with high amounts of stress." The mare said, offering a shaky smile.

"But you do look the type. Your eyes…" Aurora said almost involuntarily.

"What about them?"

"They've been around."

"I could say the same of yours. Tell me, what are they in search of now?"

Aurora paused. She was speaking to a complete stranger. It could be as innocent as a random encounter, or something as hostile as Nova's influence. She should be running from here, or maybe silencing a nosy pony.

"A friend."

"I don't really need another friend." The mare replied indifferently.

"That's not what I"—

"I know. I'm just jerking you around a bit. Come, walk with me."

The mare turned and began to walk away. She didn't bother to look back. It was evident that she either didn't care what Aurora chose to do, or that she was confident enough in her decision to avoid batting an eye. She couldn't explain it, but the mare seemed to draw her in out of a misplaced sense of curiosity.

Aurora caught up with the mare momentarily and saw that she still hadn't so much as glanced at her. It was almost disturbing.

"Vivian."

"Aurora."

"So you're looking for a friend, yes? They must mean a great deal to you."

"What makes you say"—

"Actions speak volumes. Your fluttering eyelids and convulsed movements suggested that you're deeply moved by their proverbial loss." Vivian said, completely focused ahead.

"Sure.

"Don't pull those kinds of answers with me. I won't tolerate your insubordinate dialogue." Vivian said with a commanding tone. "Tell me the details of your friend's disappearance."

"I never said that they were taken."

"Nor did I."

_Shit._

"She's been gone for hours after having presumably coming to the marketplace. I don't actually know what happened to her. I just have a bad feeling." Aurora said, confiding in the stranger.

"How reliable are these feelings of yours?" Vivian asked skeptically.

"Very."

"Is that so..." The cool blue mare said to herself. She stopped walking for a moment, but then looked as though she thought of something. "Now that I've finished my errand here, perhaps it would be wise to get a head start."

"What?"

"479 Canterbury Road. Go around back and be on the lookout for some questionable characters. See where that trail takes you." Vivian said, quickly adding an afterthought. "I'm going to assume by your attire that you can handle yourself in a fight."

"Where are you leading me to?" Aurora asked in confusion.

"I have no idea what you're implying." Vivian said as she strode away, wearing a satisfied grin on her face. "Good luck."

Aurora stood idly and watched the mare walk for a ways before being joined by a Gryphon of all things. The creature looked back at the pink pony with a mild curiosity, nothing more, nothing less. The two walked off lazily in the direction of the financial district, killing the night slowly but surely.

Once the pink pony was out of earshot, the Gryphon spoke: "Anything I need to be aware of for your next trick, ma'am?"

"Zephyr, if you call me ma'am again, so help me I will"—

"Understood, ma'am. Man." The Gryphon spoke, awkwardly trying to hide the slip of his tongue.

"Idiot." Vivian said with a genuine laugh. "And not particularly. I'm operating on a hunch, much like my new friend over there. I don't know how correct either of us are, but I do know one thing."

"And that is?"

"Silver is going to be _very _busy tonight."

* * *

"I wonder where Scratchie could've gone."

Pinkie Pie looked in both directions down the block outside of the apartment. She wasn't bouncing. It wasn't because she wasn't full of energy. Pinkie was full of energy and ready to go. It wasn't because she wasn't excited. Pinkie was _very_ excited to go on an adventure of her own creation. And it wasn't because her hooves had been tied down by thousand pound weights. Pinkie's hooves were most definitely free of such a debilitating obstacle.

No, Pinkie Pie wasn't bouncing because Vinyl's goggles were around her neck and she didn't want to scuff them, scratch them, break them, light them on fire, or do anything that may cause her friend to react less than favorably towards the smiling pink pony.

_She mentioned having a friend downtown. Maybe that's where she went. Or maybe she went looking for Octavia herself. That would be nice of her. I'll bet when she finds her they make up and become best friends again. I can't wait!_

"I guess I'll just go find her friend. What was his name again? Rufus? No… Ronald? No. Richard! Yeah…that's not it."

* * *

"Randy! Uh uh… Renee? Nope. Hmmm…"

Pinkie Pie had been rattling off names continuously as she walked towards the center of the city. Though she hadn't managed to come up with a name, she _had _managed to keep herself heading in the right direction. It was only a matter of time before she remembered the identity of Vinyl's friend, but until then, she was quite content with—

"REGGIE!" Pinkie Pie yelled, startling a few ponies around her, and earning a curious glance from another. "That's his name! Now where am I gonna find this silly filly?"

"Miss, are you referring to one Reggie Doodle?"

Pinkie Pie looked up with a smile and her eyes widened with excitement when she saw the source of the voice. A large gryphon walking out of the marketplace changed his path and strode towards the smiling mare. Pinkie responded with enthusiasm.

"Wowie! I haven't seen a gryphon in a long time! The only gryphon I know left a while ago when she thought I didn't like her! I actually did like her, but she still left. She was kind of a meanie, but wow you're a lot _bigger_ than her! You're a boy gryphon so I guess that makes sense."

"Miss?"

"Do you know a gryphon named Gilda? Is that question racist? How do you kiss other gryphons with your beak? That's probably too personal, but I'm so _curious_! You could stab each other in the mouth!"

"If you keep asking him rapid fire questions like that his head might just explode."

Pinkie craned her neck to the side of the gryphon and noticed a cool blue pony with a magenta mane standing next to him. In her excitement, she hadn't seen her there and thought herself terribly rude. She decided an apology was in order.

"Do you like cupcakes?"

"Best pastry ever." The mare replied quickly.

"Finally! Somepony who understands." Pinkie said, rolling her eyes with an approving smile. "Do you know which building my friend is in?"

"You're a friend of Mr. Doodle's?"

"A friend of a friend who went to look for him and forgot these!" Pinkie said, flashing Vinyl's goggles. "She went to see him and left these behind and so I'm going to see him because she's there and she'll want them."

"Well, I happen to know that he's holed up in _that_ building over there." The mare pointed towards a large skyscraper adorned with a large sign reading: _Doodle Corp._

"Thanks! You guys have a great day!" Pinkie said, getting ready to travel past them. She hesitated for just a moment, remembering she had to halt her bounce. In that moment, the pair she left behind moved to halt her.

"Wait! Just a moment!" The cool blue mare said, shooting a smug look towards her gryphon friend. "Would you mind taking this with you to Reggie's? I've been meaning to drop it off."

The gryphon reached deep into his coat of thick feathers and pulled out a small hoof sized device. It looked like a small bar of metal, with two small lights on the top in red and green, and numerous metal prongs that were sharpened at the ends. He handed it to Pinkie Pie whose look of excitement faded to one of deep-seated curiosity.

"What do you want me to do?" Pinkie asked with concern.

"I want you to bring that to Reggie's floor, and stick it into the large white block he has on the third level of his lab. It's the last piece of a project I've been working on and it's very important."

"Okie dokie, I'll be sure to get it to him! I Pinkie Promise!" Pinkie said, raising her hoof and poking it into her eye as a sign of her dedication.

"Right…good luck. I hope to see you around!" The cool blue mare motioned to her associate and they walked away, seemingly having somewhere to be.

"Those two where nice. I wish I could throw a party for every nice pony…_person_ I meet?" Pinkie Pie half said and half asked herself. "Oh well, time to go find Scratchie!"

The pink pony bounced off on her way, forgetting herself for just a moment. She decided to stop for a second before putting the goggles over her own eyes. Now that they were secured on her face, Pinkie was free to cease suppressing her unbridled joy, in this case expressed through repetitive, gravity based, vertical oriented physical activity.

_Boy, was that a mouthful!_

* * *

"Your narration hurts my brain Pinkie Pie." Rainbow Dash said, staring down her friend.

"I'm sorry Dashie; do you want a brain massage?" Pinkie asked well naturedly, only serving to agitate the cyan mare further.

"So did _everyone_ meet this mare? Vivian, was her name?" Thundervolt asked.

"Apparently. And yes, her name is Vivian. Vivian Quartz. _Former_ CEO of Doodle Corp." Reggie said disdainfully. "That woman was something else entirely."

"Former?" Applejack asked.

"We'll get to that." Aurora stated simply, trying to restrain a sly smile.

"Yup. It's my job now. Stupid responsibility." Reggie said with a sigh. Rarity jerked her head towards the stallion and just stared.

Everyone in the room picked up on the sudden shift in her behavior and looked her way. Rarity's gaze didn't falter in the slightest as she addressed the khaki stallion directly. "You're the one who took the position after the crash in stock?"

"Yes."

"The company's shares quintupled in worth in the span of a few months." Rarity said in awe.

"What? They weren't doing anything the right way. I helped fix it." Reggie said dismissively.

"We'll get back to that as well." Aurora said, rolling her eyes as the collection of ponies threatened to spoil the end of the story.

"So where are we picking up exactly?" Twilight asked, looking at Aurora expectantly.

"This is ridiculous. None of this makes sense anymore!" Rainbow Dash yelled. "You all keep jumping around without finishing what you started talking about!"

"That's how you tell a story." Twilight said, putting her hoof on Rainbow Dash's shoulder. "It's not supposed to make sense until their plot lines tie together."

"So you're telling me that it's _supposed_ to be a convoluted mess?"

"It isn't convoluted, it's incomplete. We're supposed to be connecting the dots as we go along. It doesn't really sound like _anypony_ here knows the whole story yet." Twilight explained.

"Besides, it certainly makes for a riveting tale in such a format." Rarity added.

"_*Cough*Floosy*Cough*!_" Vinyl said, raising her hoof to cover her mouth.

"That's hardly relevant."

"You're hardly relevant."

"And I'm relevantly hard." Reggie said, the entire train car turning uncomfortably towards him. "Now that I have your attention, enough with the back sass between you two. It isn't attractive."

"That's because I've got this troll marring my image by sitting so close." Vinyl replied as rudely as she could.

"You're a horrible pony."

"That's nice."

"I've had just about enough from the both of you!" Fluttershy said irritably. "Rarity! You need to apologize for what you said to Vinyl Scratch."

"Yea she does." Vinyl said.

"And you!" Fluttershy said, turning her attention to the mare. "I don't know you that well, but I would assume you could muster up enough sense to be the bigger pony here and forgive Rarity for her comment."

"But"—

"Can't you?" Fluttershy asked, widening her eyes to a disturbing circumference and staring down the unicorn with a near psychotic fervor.

The two unicorns removed their gazes from Fluttershy and looked to each other disapprovingly at first, before softening their features.

"Vinyl Scratch, I'm sorry for what I said. I was just poking fun at you, but that's no excuse for my rudeness. It wasn't lady-like, and it wasn't something a friend should do to another." Rarity said, meaning every word. Applejack smiled approvingly at her and turned towards Vinyl.

"If I forgive her and promise to try and get along, do I have to like her?" Vinyl asked, before receiving a good natured shove from a certain green haired pony. "Ow! I mean uh, I accept your apology. Friends?"

"Friends." Rarity said, nodding in agreement.

"You're really good at conflict resolution." Thundervolt said admiringly to Fluttershy as he squeezed the mare lovingly.

"I just hate to see friends fighting." Fluttershy stated meekly, attempting to diffuse the topic and remove the attention from herself.

"So now that that's over, I'll ask again: Where are we picking up the story?" Twilight asked a bit impatiently.

"Well we've only got about a thousand words to go before the end of the chapter. I vote for something awkward, and emotionally demanding!" Pinkie Pie asserted jovially.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Vinyl asked with concern.

"I think she wants to hear about our little talk before you…well you know." Reggie said, hinting at something that sounded important.

"But a thousand words? I don't get it."

"Just tell the story!" Twilight said, losing her patience on behalf of the crowd.

* * *

"So, we've talked about why you're here." Reggie said, turning to face Vinyl Scratch as they both walked onto the main floor of the workshop. "Would it be alright to talk about why you _haven't_ been here?"

"Reggie, I just don't"—

"You don't want to talk about it, but I'll be damned if I don't get to the bottom of this Vinyl Scratch. It's been well over two months and this is the first I've heard from you." Reggie's face contorted into disappointed smile.

"That's because I didn't want you to." Vinyl replied with equal disappointment.

"What the hell? Don't you think that's a little harsh? I mean"—

"Harsh doesn't even begin to describe it Reggie. It's unfair, it's terrible, it's downright shit…but it's also necessary beyond any reasonable doubt." Vinyl's ruby red eyes were becoming glassed. She didn't wipe them because she had been used to her goggles concealing her gaze.

Reggie took note of her expression but didn't say anything, hoping that while exposed he could more easily understand her intentions. "What makes staying away from me necessary? I mean sure I've said a few things that you might consider hurtful, but I don't feel like"—

"It's nothing _you_ said Reggie! God, you don't even know what I'm trying to do!"

"Then tell me Vinyl, for Celestia's sake _tell me_. That's all I want." Reggie said, looking at the mare desperately. "If you'd just talk to me…"

"That's the thing Reggie. I can't talk to you. You tell me things I don't want to hear." Vinyl said, her eyes welling up with unbridled frustration.

"Because you need to hear them sometimes Vinyl. You just cover up your problems by laughing them away until I ruin your day with the truth. That's the reality here." Reggie said, trying to suppress his anger. "And what happened to the problem not being something I said?"

"It isn't, it's just something I don't like…" Vinyl said, trailing off slightly. "But you're right. I do need to hear it. I just hate that I have to hear it from you."

"Why? Is it because I'm irresponsible? Because I don't have the sense to know when you're doing something you'll regret? I've got a list Vinyl, should I go on?"

"No! Damnit no Reggie! It's not that at all!"

"Then just tell me!"

"You're the pony who's supposed to make me feel good about myself Dammit!" Vinyl yelled. A few droplets hit the floor, staining it with salt. "I already have a friend to tell me I'm messing up and…and I don't want you to know I only drag you down."

"Vinyl"—

"Let me finish. Octavia is my best friend, Reggie. She knows me inside and out, and that means she's seen the good, the bad, and the ugly. I trust her with my life, but I know that I'm just another mess for her to clean up at the end of the day. She only puts up with me because…well I don't know actually. I never wanted you to see my bad side."

"Vinyl, listen to me!"

"You've seen all the bad and I've made you do so much to keep me out of trouble that's gotten you _into_ trouble and I'm just tired of being the fuck up ok!? I don't want to be the fuck up…"

"I only have one flaw about you that I need to point out Vinyl." Reggie said, walking towards the mare and lifting her chin until their eyes met. "You're too damn hard on yourself. You take what people say as an open invitation to hate everything about yourself, and _that's_ what I'm tired of."

Vinyl didn't reply.

"We've gotten into trouble together. You may have found it, but I always made the choice to be right there with you." Reggie said, moving to make eye contact with the distraught mare. "I didn't stick around because I felt bad for you, or because I thought it was the right thing to do."

"Then why did you?"

"I'm not one to make good decisions. That's why I don't run my own families business Vinyl. I do what makes me happy, regardless of how smart it is." Reggie said, turning to look out the window for a moment before meeting her gaze once more. "It just so happens that sticking with you was the best decision I've ever made."

"You're kidding me, right?" Vinyl deadpanned.

* * *

"Wow, that was really sweet of you." Aurora said with a small smile.

"Ah didn't picture you tah be so romantic." Applejack said.

"It would have been better had she not ruined the moment." Reggie said, rolling his eyes at Vinyl.

"What? I was the best friend, remember? No feelings attached." Vinyl commented defensively.

"Whatever you say darling." Rarity commented knowingly, earning a glare from the unicorn but avoiding a snide remark.

"Look, here's the part where things get awkward." Vinyl said, eager to change the subject.

* * *

"Thank you Reggie. For everything."

"I didn't do anything Vinyl. I just told you the truth. You're welcome to stay for a while if you'd like. My spare bed is indisposed, but you can hole up in my room with me if you want." Reggie said.

"If it were anyone but you I'd say you were trying to get me in bed with you." Vinyl said slyly. "I appreciate it, but I'm sure the spare bed is fine."

"Trust me, it's not. How about you just take my room to yourself and I'll get the cot." Reggie said, moving in between Vinyl and the door.

"Dude, it's fine just let me in. Your extra bed can't be _that_ nasty." Vinyl pushed past Reggie almost playfully and opened the door to the spare bedroom. Her expression bordered on panic when she saw who was inside. "Detective Limestone?"

"Ms. Scratch?" Keyes' lime green eyes were wide with surprise and what looked like guilt. "What a pleasure to see you again so soon."

"What are you doing here? In…Reggie's spare room?" Vinyl turned to look at the khaki stallion and he looked like he was hiding something. "What's going on?"

"I uh…"

"He got my memo! Yeah, he's on the hunt for Octavia!" Reggie said, shooting a look towards the officer.

"Octavia's missing?" Vinyl glared suspiciously at the unicorn. "I mean yes, and that's why I'm here. I'm going to help you find her."

"Is that right? Who else is in here with you? And save it, I can hear them laughing from inside the air duct." Vinyl said calmly.

Keyes and Reggie both looked towards the opening of the grate. A muffled and yet echoing voice sounded from inside. "Why do you have these you ass?"

The grate pushed open and to the absolute shock of Vinyl Scratch, the same white pegasus she'd met earlier in the alleyway crawled out with a beaming smile on his face. He didn't seem to pay the mare any mind, instead holding up a dusty book and looking directly at Reggie.

"You've got the entire _Daring Do_ collection tucked away in a box in there!"

"What the hell is _he_ doing here!?" Vinyl yelled, demanding answers.

"Don't worry about what I'm doing here. As far as you should be concerned, I don't exist. Isn't that right _Reginald_?" Thundervolt said smugly.

"You're an idiot."

"I didn't ask _you_, did I Keyes?"

"It doesn't matter, I answered. You need to leave." Keyes said, hinting not so subtly for the pegasus to go.

"He's not going anywhere until I get some damn answers!" Vinyl said furiously. "This guy is like some kind of creepy stalker!"

"That's him alright." Reggie replied cautiously, not wanting to anger the mare any further.

"Look Vinyl. That is your name, correct?" Thundervolt started cheekily. "I'm not going to tell you much. If our friends here are smart, _they_ aren't going to tell you much. I just want you to know that I'm not here to cause any trouble."

"Octavia is missing."

"Which no doubt means that Aurora ran off to look for her."

"Yes."

"Then I'll find them. Don't worry. I have a hunch as to where I'll find at least one of them." Thundervolt said cryptically.

"Were you going to share that with me at any point?" Keyes asked, already knowing the answer.

"Hey Keyes!"

"Get out of here."

"Ok. See you all around then." Thundervolt gave a loose salute to the room and shot back into the ventilation system, presumably heading straight up towards the roof of the building.

Vinyl just stood there in awe for a moment before turning towards Reggie with an incredulous look on her face. "We need to talk."

* * *

_**Aurora is on the way to Vivian's mystery destination, Pinkie Pie is handling strange objects, and Vinyl Scratch is thoroughly confused. Our triumvirate is having a wonderful day, don't you think? Go ahead and leave your thoughts below and stay tuned for the next installment. I got this one out early, so I'll see what I can do about the next one as well. No promises. -Chris**_


	13. Disaster

Chapter 13: Disaster

"You haven't touched your food."

"I'm aware of that."

"It's getting cold."

"That doesn't make it inedible."

"No, but it does make it less pleasant."

Silver begrudgingly turned his attention from the mare and ate his meal in relative silence. He had known Octavia for all for two hours and already had her pegged as a rational, yet stubborn mare. She wasn't quite headstrong, seeing how she was completely cooperative in her situation, but she had a certain perplexity hanging about her. It was like her ordinary life held at least one tantalizing secret.

"I wonder what it could be…" Silver said to himself as he took another bite.

"Pardon?" Octavia replied, unsure of the colt's intention.

"Nothing. You should really eat something."

"If I didn't know any better I'd guess you were trying to poison me."

"That's a bit complicated in terms of dealing with someone like you," Silver said, eyeing his knife in the wall beside him. "I'd have to go out and buy poison, put it in the food with the proper dosage to be potent and simultaneously hidden…it's just too much work."

"Looks like I'll die another way then."

"You aren't going to die here unless you trip over your own hooves. I'm just stalling for a bit."

"I'll believe that when I'm back at home."

Octavia's brow furrowed slightly and she turned away from the colt long enough to drop her guard. Silver grabbed the sharp knife from the wall by his side and leaned across the table. Octavia turned back and was about to scream she saw the utensil already plunging deep into the flesh of her sandwich, cutting it in half. Silver set the knife down on the table next to Octavia and quickly grabbed the closer half of her meal, putting what he didn't immediately stuff into his mouth back onto his plate.

"Poison or not, I told you I can't resist a Turnip Melt," Silver said, speaking with his mouth full.

Octavia looked shocked and surprised for a moment before she regained her composure and continued speaking.

"How do I know the other half isn't the part you poisoned?"

"I'm going to eat the damn sandwich if you"—

"Fine." Octavia begrudgingly took a bite out of her meal, staring at Silver the entire time with suspicion.

His hazel eyes were very intensely focused on his meal, but not in the way she would have thought. Though brutalizing his sandwich with an almost religious zeal, Silver's eyes were filled with absolute wonder. It was as if it was the first time the colt had ever tasted food, and he reveled in the feeling, taking in each sensory experience with gusto. Octavia quickly found herself staring at the perplexing stallion and broke her gaze.

A quick bat of his eyes revealed that he noticed her behavior, but didn't think much of it. Octavia was cautious, studying Silver less for establishing a reliable profile and more for curiosity. His brown speckled eyes continued to be the feature that captured her interest. The orb-like windows to the colt's soul more closely resembled a collideoscope; Emotions spun rampant inside them with a mystifying quality Octavia couldn't place.

"So you mentioned something about a friend earlier." Silver said, breaking her concentration.

"I did."

"Aren't you worried about her safety?" The colt started, "If she does manage to somehow find where you are, wouldn't it be dangerous—and downright stupid—for her to try and get to you?"

"To answer your questions: yes and yes," Octavia replied simply, "I also happen to have confidence in her ability to succeed."

"Confidence isn't the same as wishful thinking you know."

"I'm well aware of that." Octavia shot back.

"Listen, I'm not trying to do anything here. I just don't want your friend getting needlessly injured in pursuit of your freedom. I told you I was letting you go soon enough, and so I'd appreciate it if you threw me a bone so to speak." Silver watched the mare's reaction closely.

"What do you want?"

"Tell me your friend's name and give me an appearance to work with. If she's seen around the building I'll have my men escort her inside with no harm done to her."

"Something tells me that you shouldn't worry about _her_ being hurt." Octavia replied cryptically.

"Look, I can't tell those idiots outside not to attack somebody unless they know who that somebody is, so it's up to you. I refuse to take any blame for the consequences otherwise." Silver said, losing his patience slightly.

"If I know her, which I do, I think she'd appreciate the challenge." Octavia replied smugly. "Would your men?"

Silver merely frowned and turned away from the mare, quickly becoming lost in thought.

* * *

"479 Canterbury Road. This looks about right."

Aurora stood utterly still, bathed in darkness as she studied the building in front of her from the alley leading towards its rear entrance. The address Vivian had given her was a large warehouse, however it looked slightly repurposed. Windows on the lowest floor were boarded shut and numerous fortifications had been made to the top half in the form of sheet metal. Though not directly designed for the purpose, Aurora thought the building could handle a small siege.

One unicorn stood guard outside the building, though he didn't seem the least bit vigilant. In fact, he looked downright negligent as he walked under a small balcony, lied down on a ragged mattress and drifted off to sleep.

_Perhaps the rest of them aren't this lazy…_

Aurora crept out of the shadows and swiftly made her way over to the back door. It was locked from the inside, which wouldn't have been a problem if not for the additional padlock and chain. She glanced over towards the sleeping guard and noticed that he possessed a key-ring.

_How convenient._

Standing directly over the stallion, Aurora saw the keys were clipped onto a small belt around his waist. She'd have to be extremely careful in retrieving them.

***Thunk***

The once sleeping sentry, now sleeping much more soundly, gave up his keys without a fight. Aurora unlocked the rear door and crept inside, shutting the door behind her and locking it again. Not a single light source was visible in the room she entered, creating a void of blackness around the mare.

_He should be unconscious for an hour. I'll assume ten minutes is my window before he's discovered._

Aurora silently moved forward, her eyes having begun adjusting to the dark. She slipped through an open door into a long hallway. To her left was another area obscured by the lack of light. To her right, she could see a shift in the gradient. There was light to her left, and so she followed it.

The pink pony hugged the wall and kept low, keeping her focus towards the end of the hallway. She glanced into each door, making sure that she could avoid drawing attention from behind as she proceeded. Having the element of surprise was invaluable. She didn't need anypony taking that away from her prematurely.

Aurora crept cautiously through the narrow halls, pausing once in a while to get her bearings, or listen to a rogue sound resounding from a nearby room. She eventually came to a much brighter hallway and discovered the source of the light; a large, relatively open room comprising the majority of the building spread across her field of vision. Numerous industrial lights were hanging from the ceiling, lighting up the two story room dimly. A sole grate for ventilation was present on the left-most wall on the second story, big enough to fit in. There were ponies everywhere, presumably on the same side as the first sentry.

They were spread out graciously throughout the complex: Two earth ponies posted along the walls, three unicorns walking back and forth along the metal walkways comprising the second floor, and three more earth ponies sitting at a table in the center of the room. The area itself was clean but cluttered, filled with large crates and containers, filled with a variety of unlabeled goods. Aurora deduced that she'd likely passed through a sort of barracks for the ponies involved in whatever this place was.

Another doorway across the room and to her left, next to one of the wall mounted sentries, looked to be the way into the second part of the facility. It was at least a hundred meters from her position, and it wasn't exactly a straight shot.

_Don't do anything rash. You are a ghost…_

Aurora took a silent breath and slipped into the room, quickly heading right and positioning herself beside one of the containers. Many other crates were piled on top of it, providing cover on both the first and second floors. The petite pink pony pat her vest lightly, a sort of ritualistic equipment check, before peering out from cover to survey her situation.

One earth pony stood no more than ten feet from her. He appeared to be bored, but attentive. His eyes shifted around, merely doing his job. No suspicions had entered his mind. A small clanking noise resounded above Aurora, causing her to aim her sights at the unicorn positioned above her. The other two unicorns on over-watch were at the other end of the room. Aurora took her chance.

Springing up from the ground, she brought her hooves forward and gripped the netted crate nestled on top of her container cover. She secured a hoofhold and choked up on the mesh, bringing herself level with the second story walkway. A second later, Aurora was on the walkway, silently stalking the unicorn too busy clattering his hooves into the ground to notice her approach.

"No sudden moves," Aurora whispered, her hoof wrapped around the unicorn in half hold, "Where are you keeping the mare?"

"Screw yo"—

"I can hurt you all night. Tell me."

"She's with the boss. Through the hallway on our right, up the stairs. It's the only door there…" The unicorn slipped into unconsciousness as Aurora tightened her grip around his neck.

She dragged him out of the way slightly and looked around the corner of the crates from her new vantage unicorns, exactly where they were standing before. They were speaking, but Aurora couldn't pick anything up. The three ponies in the middle of the room were discussing a potential job, but details were scarce. Aurora was confident in her thinking.

_Keep it together. Nopony needs to die._

A quick leap off the railing and Aurora was free falling directly towards the earth pony she'd left below her. Before he could even look up, he was on the floor, out cold. Aurora dragged him close to the container before watching those she'd left standing. She waited for a moment before bolting from the lower left corner to the upper left, sliding _almost _soundlessly into cover. The earth pony stationed at the door she needed to traverse was now heading over to investigate the noise.

Aurora moved a bit closer, ducking in between a few boxes left along the periphery as she went. The mare moved closer to the point at which the petite pink pony had been, but it was too late to find out what had been lurking there only moments ago. One hoof around her neck, another covering her mouth and a swift kick to the stomach left the guard breathless and unable to recover. She was on the ground.

Her stealth approach had worked well up to now. No risky encounters, no bloodshed. It was going well.

_And that's the realization that causing the downward spiral._

Aurora's attitude became more of a prediction as she noticed the two unicorns on the walkway splitting up. One stayed put while the other began heading towards his unconscious friend. The pink pony moved swiftly to stop the tidal wave from being set in motion. She quickly and quietly pulled herself back onto the railing where the unicorn had left her friend. The stallion turned just in time to see Aurora pull herself up, but before he could yell, his skull bounced off the nearby wall.

The other unicorn was far enough away to where she didn't hear the impact; however she was mere feet from discovering her fallen comrades. Thinking quickly, Aurora withdrew a knife from her vest and took off down the walkway, stepping lightly enough to keep the three on the ground oblivious to her actions. Aurora flung the knife out, aiming at a random spot on the wall next to the unicorn. It hit with an audible clink, causing the unicorn to start in its direction. Mid-turn, she noticed the pink pony bearing down on her and threw out a punch.

Aurora batted the strike away expertly, countering with one of her own followed by a chokehold. The last unicorn was taken care of, leaving the three ponies in the center of the room. The confrontation proved to be louder than she had thought however, as the distant clatter of Aurora's knife on the floor gave the ponies more than enough suspicion to investigate.

_It's now or never._

Now positioned right above, Aurora lept down onto their table with a stunning entrance. She bucked her legs into the closest combatant's face, knocking him out instantly. The other stallion swung at her legs in an attempt to knock her over. The petite pink pony caught his hoof and rolled off the table, flipping him over her body.

He hit the ground hard but rolled to his hooves and pounced. Aurora reacted, reaching back and grabbing a full mug of cider. It felt like their encounter slowed to a crawl as the contents of the glass traced a sparkling golden line in a chaotic arc towards the stallions face. The glass impacted solidly, causing the stallion to fall to the ground. The misty, apple-scented remains of the beverage floated through the air for a split second before hitting the floor. Aurora turned to intercept the lone mare and was shocked to find her standing there in fear.

Aurora moved closer and saw her try to move away, but she was frozen in place. The pink pony put her hooves around the mares neck and stared menacingly into her familiar green eyes.

_My eyes…_

"You saw what happened to your allies. When you wake up, get out of here and find a safer way to live your life. You don't want to end up like me." Aurora said with a pang of remorse.

"When I wake up? What do yo"—

Another dent in the table, another disabled pony lying on the floor of a dirty old warehouse. The room was clear, but Aurora's mind was not. Her swirling emotions were clouding her thoughts, preventing her from coming up with any reasonable action. She looked towards the passage heading deeper into the warehouse and frowned.

"Civilian my ass."

Aurora started, but visibly calmed as she recognized the source of the voice. She looked towards the doorway from which she previously entered and found a familiar lime green stallion standing there, clad in a brown police vest.

"Are you here to stop me?" Aurora asked.

"Oh no, I'm here to see the owner. By all means, continue." Keyes said, egging her on. "I walked in just in time to see the last three go down. Sorry about the girl."

"She doesn't matter. Just a young mare making a bad decision." Aurora looked down at the pony, immobile at her hooves.

"I hear that habit gets around," Keyes said with a sly grin. "The room up ahead is clear. At least it should be."

"What makes you say that?" Aurora asked doubtfully.

"Prior arrangements. Your involvement may or may not have affected their outcome." Keyes replied cryptically, with a large smile that only served to irritate the mare. "And before you start demanding information, you should probably consider the fact that I'd desire some for myself."

"Fine then. I'll lead. Octavia's safety is my priority, do you understand?" Aurora asked forcefully, practically demanding his response.

"She's mostly why I'm here. It just so happens I can run an errand while I'm at it," Keyes said seriously, looking Aurora straight in the eyes, "I promise I'll do everything I can."

Aurora didn't respond, but her gaze beamed with appreciation. The two ponies fell into step and proceeded through the passageway.

* * *

"Wowie! There's a whole lotta ponies still out!"

It was after midnight and the streets around Manehattan's shopping district were still relatively crowded. Though the stalls themselves were all but closed, many of the areas night clubs and restaurants remained open to provide escape and entertainment for the many denizens of the city.

"Everything gets super duper EXTRA quiet back in Ponyville around this time." Pinkie Pie stopped walking and gasped audibly, garnering the looks of more than a few passersby. "If ponies don't go to bed early in the city, that means they can party all night long! That means that I could throw…an ALL. NIGHT. _PARTY_!"

Pinkie Pie proceeded to hop, skip, and jump with even more excitement than usual. Perhaps it was the fact that she was imagining the many different types of party scenarios she could create using the bountiful stage of dusk. Maybe it was the fact that she was running on very little sleep thanks to the sheer spectacle of the city keeping her up at night. Regardless of the stimuli, Pinkie Pie was undeniably, unfathomably more hyperactive than usual. Ever since she'd met that pony and her Gryphon friend, the night had become much less of an errand spawned from boredom and more of a psychedelic romp through time, space, and the enigma of her own mind. Or maybe every other reason was just an excuse, and her level of expendable energy was so greatly modified because she briefly stopped to indulge in something that her friend Twilight had barred her from use. _Coffee_.

"Ifeelsogoodwhycan'tIdothismoreoften!?" Pinkie Pie yelled, followed by a rapid twitch of her leftmost eye, "Oh…_that's_ probably why."

Another impromptu inhalation and Pinkie was on the verge of collapse.

"I'm so hyper and I know it so why can't I control it at all! Wait, aren't crazy ponies _not _supposed to know what's causing the problem!?" Pinkie Pie's pupils constricted and she began speaking more silently. "Oh no… I think I'm becoming _self-aware._ I have to stop me!"

Pinkie Pie bounded off hurriedly in an attempt to dismantle the legion of evil intent forming inside her head and an item fell from her storage savvy curls onto the ground. She immediately stopped and turned to see what it was and found that it was the shiny object bequeathed to her by that pony and the Gryphon.

"Oh that's right! I have to bring this to Doodle Corp!" Pinkie Pie said with a giggle, "That's a funny name for a building."

Pinkie adjusted the goggles on her face, re-centering them on her face. The worlds slightly purple complexion excited the mare, and she bounced giddily towards her destination with not one, but two items of interest.

"I can't wait until I get there and see their smiling faces!"

* * *

Vinyl stood there quietly, wearing a huge frown on her face. Reggie was across the room, looking very terrified. The numerous instances of shattered glass and debris around the room hinted towards a struggle. Vinyl Scratch was definitely not responsible for it though. She definitely didn't throw anything at Reggie, or break any of his things. She most certainly didn't yell any obscenities at him for keeping secrets from her. She was calm, cool, and collected.

"You shit-head." She muttered quietly at the stallion. "Come over here. I'm done."

"I'm gullible, but I'm not stupid!" Reggie shouted from behind cover.

"Do you wanna test me!?"

Silence, but then a muffled response: "No…" Reggie peeked out from behind the table and was met with a serious look of disappointment.

"Vinyl, listen to me. I didn't know that you'd run into this guy before! He wasn't anyone I'd have thought to mention otherwise," Reggie said earnestly as he hesitantly stepped closer. "He's only here because he knows that Keyes and I know each other."

"So would you care to explain that?" Vinyl asked, doing her best not to yell.

"I've known him since I moved out here as a colt. We grew up together; I watched him enter the police academy and I was there each time he got promoted!"

"And I haven't heard of him before because?..."

"You always told me you were my only friend, and every time you came around I happened to be alone." Reggie stated simply. "He's basically the _only_ other person I talk to."

"Except the pegasus." Vinyl said. "Are you going to tell me his name?"

"No, because I don't know anything about him." Reggie said, lying through his teeth.

"Well then I guess we don't have anything else to discuss. I swear Reggie, I don't know if I should believe you or hit you in the face."

"Well you haven't told me how _you_ know him! Keyes brought him here and told me that he needed to stay for a bit."

"And I told _you_ that he stalked me into an alley."

"But why?"

"It doesn't matter why, just drop it."

* * *

"Wait a second, why didn't you freak out earlier then?" Reggie asked Vinyl. The audience turned towards the mare with curiousity.

"Because you can't lie for shit," Vinyl deadpanned. "I didn't know what you were involved in, but I figured that if you trusted him to an extent, he was probably alright. Besides, Aurora here seemed to be attached to him, and he was nice enough to me when we met."

"Aw, that's so nice of you." Thundervolt said from across the aisle with a teasing smile.

"All you knew was that I briefly saw him one time. I'm surprised you didn't make the connection when I told you he knew Aurora." Vinyl answered back, rolling her eyes.

Reggie slapped a hoof to his face, immediately realizing his mistake. "Well, I never did claim to be very observant."

"He never even checked my credentials, haha." Thundervolt said, looking over to Aurora who gave him a small smile.

"The perfect pony to hang around, huh?" She responded, glancing back at the khaki stallion.

"Look, ignoring my inability to make connections, let's skip ahead a bit so you can all see how I saved everypony's lives!" Reggie said with slight irritation.

* * *

"So we've basically hashed everything out. Does that mean I'll get to see you more often?" Reggie asked hopefully.

"Sure. But that doesn't mean I like hanging around you or anything. I'll be coming over for the food." Vinyl said half seriously.

"I can live with that."

***Knock Knock***

"More house guests?" Vinyl asked incredulously.

"None that have announced themselves," Reggie said, a thought entering his mind, "Though I've had three so far and I only expected one of them…"

Vinyl Scratch walked over to the door and after a brief check for puffed eyes or rogue cowlicks she opened the door to find somepony she didn't expect.

"Pinkie Pie? What are you doing here…with my _goggles_?"

"Hi Vinyl! You forgot your goggles at home and so I brought them to you because I knew that you wouldn't be happy not having them with you because you always have them with you and I know that if I didn't have something important of mine I'd be really upset so"—

Pinkie Pie was cut off when the hoof entered her mouth.

"Thank you Pinkie Pie. That was very thoughtful." Vinyl said, aware that the mare didn't take to criticism like most others.

"Ooh! You must be Reggie! And this must be your secret laboratory! Do you have any death rays?" Pinkie Pie said, bounding over towards the stallion with an inquisitive look in her eye.

"No, but I've got a two-hundred pound block of C-4 up on the third floor. You wanna see it?" Reggie asked enthusiastically.

"You have _what_?" Vinyl asked in disbelief as she reaffixed her goggles to her face.

"I wanna see, I wanna see!" Pinkie said, not waiting for confirmation before galloping upstairs.

Reggie and Vinyl followed the mare up each step, failing to match her energy one to one. They caught up to her momentarily and saw her standing very close to the explosives, looking it over in sheer wonder. She looked impressed by the object, though she clearly didn't understand what she was looking at.

"This is a really big block of stuff!" Pinkie said, fishing through her mangled mane. "Now where did that little thingamajiger go?"

"What are you looking for?" Vinyl asked.

"Got it! I thought I lost this!" Pinkie said, producing the small rectangle from her curls. She touched the block and found that it was slightly squishy to the touch. "Ahaaaah!"

"What is that?" Reggie asked with audible concern.

"I dunno but it goes…here!" Pinkie said excitedly, jamming the object into the top of the block.

A few seconds went by before the rectangle's red bulb lit up.

"Oh shit." Reggie said, tensing up for a moment.

"What? What!?" Vinyl asked, starting to panic.

The red light turned off and the green light switched on with an audible beep.

"Oh _holy_ shit!" Reggie said, panic now moving to full blown terror. "Everybody run! Down the pole now!"

"Reggie!?"

"NOW!"

Vinyl turned and ran towards the fire pole in the corner of the room at Reggie's command. The khaki stallion grabbed Pinkie Pie and forced her in the same direction. All three ponies ran as fast as they could, Vinyl being the first to reach the pole and slide down. Reggie assisted Pinkie with her exit before following and reaching the bottom floor of the lab.

He was quick to keep moving, the two mares close on his tail.

"What's going on!?" Vinyl yelled, out of breath from the sudden exertion.

"The explosive is primed! It's going to blow!" Reggie responded just as they reached the door to the stairwell, "We have to clear the blast radius or we're as good as dead!"

"That doesn't sound very fun." Pinkie said sadly.

"You're lucky I'm not leaving you behind!" Reggie yelled.

The door wasn't budging for some reason. Reggie tried the door a few more times and got no results. In a sudden surge of resolve, the stallion backed up a few paces and sprinted towards the door with almost practiced form. He angled his shoulder and collided with the side closet to the handle.

The door frame shuddered. He went again, this time growling in pain at the impact. His pain wasn't for nothing however as the lock broke and the door swung inwards, revealing multiple levels of stairs winding down the building with a large opening in the center leading to the bottom of the stairwell.

"Get down the stairs! Hurry!" Reggie yelled. He unintentionally heard loud beeping from upstairs. "We've got to move."

Pinkie Pie did what she was told and booked it down the stairs, having the common sense not to look back and just trust that her friends were behind her. Vinyl was right behind her, and Reggie was halfway down the first flight of stairs when his right shoulder gave out, sending him tumbling a few steps into the ground where he landed on the injury with a grunt.

"Crap, Reggie!" Vinyl doubled back towards the downed stallion.

"Vinyl, keep going dammit!"

"Not without you!"

Vinyl reached down and grabbed Reggie's good arm, bringing it over her head. She lifted upwards, towing the stallion along with difficulty until he got to his hooves. They had barely righted themselves before the air around them seemed to heat up. A fraction of a second passed and the building shook, a cacophony of activity coming from the lab.

Reggie used his remaining strength to grab onto Vinyl and hold her in a tight embrace. He leaned over the railing and pushed with his legs, sending the two ponies into a free fall towards the bottom of the stair well. Reggie made sure to orient himself closer to the ground while holding Vinyl on top. His shoulder pain spiked and his vision began to fade. The stallions last moments of consciousness were met by a passing pink blur, followed by a vast cloud of smoke and fire rushing towards them at a frightening velocity.

* * *

"What the hell happened here?" Aurora asked, her eyes scanning the room in disbelief.

"Exactly what I asked for." Keyes replied cryptically, as he surveyed the scene with the pink pony.

The corridor the two ponies had taken would around a few unimportant rooms before emerging into another room about as large as the previous one. This room was much more linear, only possessing one staircase at the back end, and multiple, smaller rooms reminiscent of garages right beside each other. Their defining feature didn't lay in their architecture however. What called attention to these ceiling-free rooms was the abundance of unconscious ponies sprawled about them in varying degrees of pain and misery.

"Somepony got here first." Aurora stated simply.

"Yes they did. Now, shall we?" Keyes said, gesturing towards the staircase.

"No explanation?"

"None whatsoever."

"Sounds about right."

Keyes and Aurora ascended the staircase quietly, charging a spell and readying a knife. They were about to reach the doorway when the floor started to shake. The tremors only lasted for a few moments, but they were relatively intense and served to jostle the two ponies out of their focus.

"What the hell was that?" Aurora asked under her breath.

"No time. Breach the door!" Keyes yelled in a hushed voice.

Aurora obeyed and moved in front of the door. She looked towards the hinges and saw the door was designed to swing inward. Nodding to herself internally, she aimed slightly left of the lock and away from the door frame and placed a powerful buck square on the target.

The door caved in and to her surprise a light grey stallion was on the receiving end of a door sandwich. He tumbled back, catching sight of Aurora mid roll. The pink pony entered the room just in time to see the stallion grab for a knife on his desk. She rushed forward and was surprised to see him throw said knife at her dead on.

Aurora raised her own weapon in the nick of time, deflecting the projectile up and away from her. She threw her own knife at the stallion as he rolled over the desk to take cover, catching him in the shoulder as he moved.

A sharp cry of pain resounded from the stallion, but he wasn't finished yet. He stood up and attempted to throw another knife. As he raised his arm, a green bolt of energy shot towards him, gripping his hoof and pinning it to the wall behind him. He dropped the knife, staring the intruders down as it clattered to the floor.

Aurora immediately ran for the stallion, throwing her hoof into his gut with more than enough force to make him very uncomfortable.

"WHERE IS SHE!?" She demanded, raising her hoof for another strike.

Aurora's hoof was grabbed from the side and just as she was about to swing her elbow into the attackers face, she turned and found a familiar mare at the helm of the attack.

"For the love of all that's holy, stop!" Octavia yelled in desperation. "You're going to kill him!"

"Gods know I want to. Are you ok?" Aurora asked in a worried tone, forgoing personal space and pulling the mare into a tight hug. "I thought you were hurt."

"I'm fine, Aurora. I didn't mean to get you all riled up." Octavia said earnestly. "I never meant to go and get abducted."

"I told you that wasn't my fault." Silver said defensively, his hoof still pinned to the wall.

"Nobody asked you!" Aurora said, her anger flaring dangerously.

"Stop, stop! He's right. He had no part in my disappearance other than employing the ponies who did."

"That makes him responsible." Aurora said irritably.

"All he has done is shown me kindness and respect. I'm not asking you to shake his hoof, I'm asking you to stop brutalizing him!" Octavia said, her confidence wavering. "I-I don't want to see you like this."

Aurora visibly recoiled at her comment. She realized that she must look terrifying. She had just gotten done searching through dirty alleyways, incapacitating a room full of ponies, and stabbing another one in the shoulder. She wasn't Octavia's friend right now, she was the hardened soldier she'd become over the years. The same one that had taken lives.

"I… I'm sorry." Aurora said, bringing her voice down to a normal level. She glanced over towards the bound pony and nodded her head. The action spoke volumes in Aurora's mind, and she hoped that it conveyed her point, because she didn't plan on thanking the stallion anytime soon.

"So, looks like we can finally sit down and have us a little heart to heart." Keyes said as he entered the room. "You've got a lot to answer for, Silver."

"I would say that my reputation precedes me if I weren't addressing the most _feared_ detective in the MPD." Silver said with an edge of sarcasm. "To what do I owe the honor of being bound and _not _gagged? And I'd like to see your warrant."

"Don't have one. This is off the record, so you can put the jokes away. You know exactly what that means." Keyes said coldly, focusing his hard green eyes on the stallion.

Silver frowned, and his body stiffened. "I understand. Have a seat. The chair is over in the corner where the pink one sent it flying."

"That's fine, I'll stand. I never have hit someone without having the good graces to stand on my own hooves." Keyes replied cordially. "Ladies, your business is done here. Leave, please."

Aurora nodded her head in understanding and looked at Octavia. "Come on, let's get you home."

"What about Silver?" Octavia asked with mild concern.

"Detective Limestone will handle him."

"What do you mean by 'handle'?" The mare sounded worried.

"Keyes won't do anything drastic. He's a good cop." Aurora said surely. "He just seems to be participating in some extra-curricular activities."

Octavia seemed to accept the answer, if not with a bit of difficulty. The two ponies walked through the building, passing the violence along the way. It was hard for Aurora to tell how Octavia was taking the sight because her head was pointed towards the floor when not looking at them.

The two finally came to the exit, passing the still unconscious guard at his station. Aurora led Octavia to the street, making sure to get into a well-lit area before attempting to start a conversation.

"Listen, Octavia"—

The grey mare sprung forward and grabbed Aurora, pulling her into a warm embrace. The petite pink pony was almost suffocated by the affection at first. Not sure how to respond, she just raised her hoofs and put them on her back. The expression continued for what seemed like a joyous forever, but they finally broke apart to reveal misty, purple eyes.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Octavia said, her cheeks warm and wet. "I should never have said those things to you. I don't deserve to have a friend like you."

Aurora was dumbfounded by the display of emotion in front of her. She wanted so badly to scoop the mare up in her hooves again, and tell her that it didn't matter. That she could never be mad at somepony so amazing. It wouldn't be fair to her however. She opted for a different response.

"It sounds like I'm not the only one you had a falling out with. Vinyl Scratch came back to the apartment angry." Aurora said, pushing her feelings aside.

"I wasn't kind to her either. I was mad at you and took it out on her. She was only trying to help." Octavia said in a dejected tone.

"She seems the type." Aurora said. She looked around, physically searching for her next thought when she caught sight of bright source of light. "What the hell is that?"

Octavia looked in the same direction and was shocked at the sight before them. Relatively close by, a skyscraper was on fire. It looked as the though the building was separated in two by the flames, the fire dwarfing the bright red _Doodle Corp._ sign on the roof in size.

"One of Vinyl Scratch's friends lives there! What happened!?" Octavia asked with worry.

"The tremors… There must have been an explosion!" Aurora said with concern. "Let's go see if we can find anything out."

The mares ran through the relatively empty streets, passing closed stores and quiet apartments on the way to scene. After about ten minutes, they reached the building and saw that it was surrounded by the Manehattan Police Department, as well as numerous gawking civilians. Aurora found a nearby police officer and made a beeline towards her.

"What happened?"

"Stay back, miss. This scene isn't safe."

"I'm with the Central Guard." Aurora said, pulling a fake I.D. from her vest and stowing it before the officer could get a good look. "Tell me the situation."

"Yes, ma'am. We felt tremors down at the station and shortly after received reports of a large explosion originating from the upper floors of this building. We're waiting on rescue personnel to search the building, but we've started an evacuation of the lower floors." The officer looked towards the building with worry. "It's after hours so not many ponies were inside, but a few of the survivors mentioned a couple ponies that might have been near the blast."

"What ponies?" Octavia added.

"One of the founder's kids, and two mares. A white one and a pink one. That's all we have to go on."

"Oh no. Oh no oh no!" Octavia was quickly losing her grip. "Vinyl and Pinkie!"

"Shit." Aurora pushed past the officer and sprinted towards the building, dodging police and evacuees as she went. She could hear ponies calling out towards her but she didn't listen.

_They have to be fine. They can't die!_

* * *

_***Looks at clock* *Sighs heavily* *Pushes keyboard away***_


	14. Ashes

Chapter 14: Ashes

_It's always a joy watching that mare work._

Thundervolt was thinking as he put some distance between himself and the Afillyate's headquarters. He had a few niggling doubts stowed in the back of his head, but he was confident that with the additional company Keyes provided that Aurora could handle herself.

Keyes had made things very clear. Thundervolt only had one job. That job was to make sure Keyes didn't meet any resistance on his way to speak with a colt named Silversmith. The impromptu leader of a dying legion of gangsters turned saboteurs. Thundervolt had heard of him before, the nephew of Coppersmith, former leader of the Afillyates in their prime. It was once the worst crime syndicate in all of eastern Equestria.

Now it was nothing more than a ghost of its former self. Thundervolt and Aurora hadn't even stepped in to stop the organization when under Nova's control. It was partly because he thought they weren't ready to take on a group with such finesse and organization. The main reason however, was that the unicorn had a great deal of respect for any pony capable of such persuasion.

The cold night air bit at the white pegasus as he flew briskly towards the darkened horizon. The October sky wasn't unfriendly in the least, but it still wrapped its chilling tendrils around each of Thundervolt's limbs with encroaching enthusiasm. Soon the air would be even colder, numbing even. The stallion welcomed this change. Once numb, his body would be able to push through the sensation when necessary. A cold and tingling body was nothing new.

Thundervolt felt an odd shift in the air just as a bright flash and excruciating sound caught his attention. The pegasus turned to the right just in time to witness the center of the Doodle Corp. building explode into a ball of shrapnel and fire from the distance. His stomach rose into his chest as he made the frightening connection.

_Stable my flank…_

Thundervolt beat his wings ferociously to gain altitude, putting himself on the level of the building's smoldering wound. The stallion sped towards the scene as quickly as he could, the sounds of sirens already filling the streets below. Within moments the police would be at the building setting up a perimeter, barring anypony on the ground from entering the building. It was fortunate that a certain pegasus wasn't limited to terrestrial movement.

Ashes danced around the sky, lit up by moonlight and smoldering flames. A beautiful image of destruction spread out across the night sky like a tear between dimensions. The entire three floor suite of Reggie's lab was decimated, along with parts of the floors above and below it. There weren't many safe points of entry, most of the side of the building still on fire or structurally unsound. The stallion spotted a small section of flooring that survived the blast and gravitated towards it.

Touching his stark white hooves down onto a scorched black floor, sending ash and embers in all directions, Thundervolt began his search. It was obvious what had happened. The bomb went off. The question was how. Reggie had said it wasn't primed, meaning _something_ had to have triggered it. The only problem with testing that theory was the fact that whatever it had been was almost definitely lost in the blast. A chunk of explosives that large was more than capable of decimating the majority of anything.

Satisfied that there would be no leads in an investigation, Thundervolt shifted his objectives to search and rescue. Treading lightly, the stallion moved past the remains of Reggie's spare room, noting the half scorched copy of _Daring Do and the Infinite Well of Wonder_. A fitting end for the book. Thundervolt could only hope that Reggie didn't share the same fate.

The door to the stairwell ahead of the pegasus was ripped from its hinges. Upon further inspection, the door was in pieces on the floor, having been blown into the wall by the concussive force of the explosion. Bits of the floor having been spared the flame were searing hot, absorbing the remaining heat from the material that had finished burning.

Thundervolt took flight, hovering over the smoldering floors with caution. He progressed down the stairs in a spiral fashion, combing the ruins for any sign of survivors.

_Or bodies._

Three flights down, another door had been blown off its frame, landing wholly in the room in previously covered. The room had a large black scar protruding from the stairwell, all the way out the shattered windows, but it was otherwise intact. Thundervolt looked around the room and saw that debris had made its way down via isolated collapses in the ceiling. One of the piles was moving slightly.

Making haste, the stallion rushed over and began moving pieces of drywall, wood, metal, and rock away from the pile. He quickly found a small pocket of air left in the middle, which housed an unconscious surprise. A pink pony, covered in ash and flesh wounds lay there breathing softly, her mane mangled by the heat. She looked to be in a stable condition, and so Thundervolt hoisted her onto his back, securing her with the curve of his neck.

Not satisfied that there weren't others, but lacking the time to check, Thundervolt exited the room and began heading down the stairs again. The floor was still extremely hot, but with the pink pony on his back, flight would be a poor choice. The stallion stifled the pain as he walked, taking care not to trip or drop the mare. One flight down, his hooves were uncomfortable. Two flights down, his hooves were in great pain. Four flights down, Thundervolt wouldn't be comfortable walking until he'd had a few hours to heal up. It was on the seventh flight of stairs that the passage stopped, providing a cooler floor and a safe exit.

These details were immediately dismissed at the sight before him however. Lowering the pink pony to a safe spot, Thundervolt looked at his friend Reggie, his legs clearly broken and his shoulder dislocated severely. He had multiple lacerations and bruises, and he was slowly producing a small pool of blood. The only good news was that he was still breathing regularly. The mare Thundervolt had met in the alleyway was lying beside him in much better shape. One of the lenses of her goggles was completely smashed, revealing a dazed and bloodied ruby eye. Her horn was still glowing a faint blue, producing a weak, non functioning spell. After what looked to be a last ditch effort at saving them both, she was most likely in shock and unable to see the stallion, or anything else around her.

Thundervolt was not a medic. He didn't know advanced first aid, he didn't have any healing magic, and he didn't have any supplies. There was only one thing the stallion could do to help, and it was going to suck.

* * *

"Don't tell me. All three of their unconscious bodies floated down seven flights of stairs and across a thousand square feet of office space by themselves?" Aurora asked, knowing the answer already. "I guess that explains the bloody hoofprints."

"Wow, you saved our lives." Vinyl Scratch said in awe, not sure what else to say.

"I didn't save any of you. Pinkie Pie got lucky, and you must have done something to protect yourself and Reggie during that fall." Thundervolt responded.

"I tried to do a force field spell, but I'm not that gifted with magic besides basic levitation…" Vinyl replied uneasily. "I screwed up and accidentally slowed our fall enough to keep the jumper here from cracking his skull."

"Hey, there wasn't any time! What was I supposed to do?" Reggie said defensively.

"You did what you could…and I couldn't thank you enough." Vinyl said thoughtfully, looking at the stallion with appreciation.

"So what happened?" Twilight asked, trying to move along the story.

"Yeah! Did you guys kick that stupid mare in the flank or what!?" Rainbow Dash half asked and half demanded.

"And what did Detective Limestone want with Silversmith? It couldn't have been anything good..." Rarity thought to herself.

"Ah'm more curious about what that Vivian mare had to do with him. Ah mean what kinda deal were they workin'?" Applejack inquired curiously.

"C'mon, when are you gonna answer everypony's questions! I'm dying here!" Spike added dramatically.

"I don't really know what happened after that. I just remember the hospital gave me SO much ice cream! They had a bunch of really great flavors like vanilla, chocolate, vanilla chocolate swirl, butterscotch, strawberry"—

"I think what Pinkie is trying to say is, um, th-that _Aurora_ would be the best pony to keep telling the story…if that makes sense." Fluttershy put forth meekly, searching the train car for looks of approval.

"Well Fluttershy, as much as I'd love to agree, I think Thundervolt should continue." Aurora spoke up, locking her neon green eyes on the white pegasus. "I'd like to see where he went in such a hurry."

The entire room looked over at the stallion in anticipation.

"Uh, sure. Let me hit the restroom first." Thundervolt said, getting out of his chair and moving swiftly towards the front of the train.

"Volt, the closest bathroom is towards the back of the train." Rainbow Dash said, gesturing towards the caboose.

"Yea, but Rarity shit herself in there. I'll be quick, promise!" The stallion said as he rushed away, leaving two white unicorns, one turning a deep red and the other choking back laughter, in his wake.

Thundervolt broke his gallop and turned it into a brisk trot, passing through the seemingly empty train car in a hurry. He was about to pass through to the next car when he caught sight of two mares sitting quietly in the seats beside him. The two were clearly twins; the only notable difference between the two being the one with an alpha on her flank was bleeding from the nose.

"Are you alright, Miss?" Thundervolt asked, clearly perturbed by the disturbing sight of the two.

"Megan punched me in the face." The crème colored mare said in a depressive tone, fixing her frost blue eyes onto the ground.

Thundervolt looked over towards the other mare.

"I punched her in the face." The mare said simply, with an air of joy at the statement. "As my sister signified just now, my name is Megan. She is called Ally."

"Thundervolt. Nice to meet you both. You need anything for that"—

"No!" Ally yelled suddenly, presumably in reply. "I-I mean no…"

Thundervolt used all his restraint to keep from indicating his worry.

"Well, it seems you two have each other covered. If you'll excuse me, I was heading to the still."

"Have a good time in there!" Ally beamed with a sudden shift in demeanor.

"You're vulgar and stupid." Megan said to her sister.

"Right…bye."

Thundervolt continued on into the next car, moving on to his errand. Megan watched him depart with extraordinary concentration, waiting until he left earshot.

"I knew we should have been through their car. Both experimentals are present, and with one of the elements contaminated there's no telling how things will be complicated."

"I dunno, I think the plan will still work." Ally said cheerfully. "It isn't that intricate. I don't even think it's dependant on any sort of variables."

"Everything rests on the details you idiot. You simply choose to ignore the signs of failure until you've already botched whatever it was you were doing." Megan said venomously. "It's time you started setting up."

"Aww, why do I have to do it?"

"Because you're much more durable." Megan stated simply. "More importantly, because I told you to do so."

Ally shook slightly and recoiled as her sister locked eyes with her. Megan's frosty pupils grew in intensity, constricting more and more as she stared. Ally tried desperately to look away, but to no avail. She could only watch as her sister's near demonic eyes grew more and more severe, her pupils transforming into snake-like slits.

* * *

"Sorry about the delay everypony. I got a bit sidetracked…" Thundervolt said, shooting a worried look at Aurora. The pink pony nodded in understanding. "So, where were we...?"

"Ah think you were gonna tell us where y'all ran off to after yer little act o' heroism." Applejack reminded the stallion.

"I can't wait to hear this…" Aurora said with fake curiosity.

* * *

"You could have attempted to strike a deal with me _before_ bruising my stomach. I'm more than reasonable." Silver spat, blood and saliva landing elegantly on the floor beside him.

"Consider the warm-up returning the favor. I've been busting my ass on the street for months trying to get your little gang under control." Keyes said, brushing off the comment.

"Believe me; I've been attempting to do the same." Silver rolled his eyes and reaffixed them on the lime green unicorn. "So if you'd be so kind as to unbind me, I'll give you what you need to put every member of this association behind bars."

"Except you of course." Keyes said with evident disappointment. "And what about your contracts?"

"I destroy any and all files relating to anyone that hires me. It's part of the reason why I'm such a popular lease." The metallic grey pony boasted. "I'm only giving you the files on my men because I'm tired of this game."

"How convenient. Ever think of quitting earlier? Maybe never going down this road at all? I hear that's a great choice for troubled youth."

"Do I look troubled?" Silver asked, his bound hoof falling to the ground. "I'll gather the files for you and put them in two unmarked boxes which you can 'anonymously' deliver to your precinct."

"And I'll brush your records under the rug. As long as you clear the city for a while, you should be fine."

"I don't negotiate with _should_." Silver said seriously.

"This isn't negotiation. This is the only offer you get, and I can tell you that a few MPD Strike teams would love to raid this little shack of yours." Keyes said in a threatening tone. "Last I heard they don't need warrants. They just need a hunch."

"You men of the law can't seem to avoid corruption, can you?" Silver cracked. "It's a sad day in Equestria that an organization of criminals operates with more honor than the police force."

"Take your honor and shove it. Once I kill the poison I'm out of the force."

"Ha, that's rich. You'll die before you complete _that_ crusade," The stallion laughed, shoving file after file into the boxes in front of him. "If you want to start somewhere, I suggest talking to your commanding officer. He'd be the one to speak to about ponies on the take."

"Don't talk about the sarge like that. He's a better stallion than both of us put together." Keyes said sternly.

"Better than a dirty cop and a gang leader? Give the colt a fucking medal."

"Are you done yet?"

"I've a few more loose ends to tie up. Hold onto your badge for a moment."

Keyes stared at the metallic grey stallion as he shuffled around papers, sorting through potentially incriminating documents like they were trading cards. He didn't let it show, but Silver's accusations about Pace's integrity as an officer were troubling. The sergeant had taught him everything he knew. If what he said was true…

Keyes banished the thought as he heard the tell-tale rustling of feathers and the clicking of hooves on metal. "I was wondering where you sped off to"—

Keyes turned and stopped dead mid-sentence. Thundervolt stood in front of him, not the familiar stark white he'd come to recognize, but covered in dark black ash and fresh blood. His eyes were glassy, but not inherently distraught.

"What the hell happened!?" Keyes demanded. "Where did you go?"

"It's Reggie… The Doodle Corp building…the seventeenth floor exploded. I'll give you one guess as to how." Thundervolt said with an exasperated sigh.

"Dammit, that _idiot!_ I told him…" Keyes trailed off, lost in thought.

"Settle down, he isn't dead. At least he wasn't when I carried him down to the third floor." Thundervolt said with an ounce of cheer.

"Thank Celestia he made it out. How"—

"His little marefriend saved his ass. She and another pink pony were there as well, unconscious. I brought them down to the third floor also."

"Are they alright?"

"My partner was breaching the building as I was carrying them down. I abandoned them once I was sure she would find them. They're all in good hooves."

Keyes let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. He was noticeably worried, but he sported a look of relief at the news. Silver had stopped putting away papers and was instead paying attention to the two stallion's conversation with curiosity.

"I'm going to curse myself for asking, but was the explosion caused by an abnormally large block of _unprimed_ plastic explosives?"

Thundervolt and Keyes turned their full attention to the colt.

"I presume that's a yes. Detective, out of the goodness of my heart, I'm going to include another file in my already hefty heap."

"What file?"

"The complete, unabridged documentation of my every dealing with the one and only Vivian Quartz." Silver said slyly.

"C.E.O. of _Doodle Corp._" Keyes said in surprise. "What does she have to do with this?"

"To put it simply?" Silver asked, looking in between the two ponies proudly. "Everything."

* * *

Vinyl Scratch awoke to find the world had turned to black. The last thing she could remember was falling down through a wall of searing heat. It was as if the mare had transcended reality and reached the first circle of hell.

_Oh no…_

"If there's anyone out there, I'm sorry for all the drinking…and the sex…sort of."

"Thank goodness, she's awake. Aurora! She's awake!"

"T-Tavi? Where are you!? What's going on? Why can't I see anything!?"

"You have bandages over your eyes. You're in the Central Manehattan Emergency Room, safe and round." Octavia said with sever relief.

"But, what about"—

"The explosion?" Aurora cut in. "It's over. You're fine. You're all fine…"

"Reggie? P-Pinkie?"

"Reggie is in intensive care, but he's awake and demanding morphine and hard liquor interchangeably." Octavia said with a happy smile.

"And I took Pinkie Pie down to the Cafeteria minutes ago. She only got a few scrapes and bruises." Aurora added.

"Phew." Vinyl said, stressing her relief. "Glad everybody's ok. Now…about these bandages…"

"The doctor told me he could only save one thing, your ears or your eyes." Octavia said grimly. "I told him to take your eyes in order to preserve your career in music."

"You're getting too good at that…"

"Good at what?"

"Octavia."

"Your left eye was injured. Apparently the lens on your goggles shattered and some shards got in," The mare said calmly, "You eye is fine, it just needs to remain bandaged until they can get a patch for it."

"What about the other eye? Why is _it_ covered!?"

"I think the intern did the wrappings…"

"Figures. Blind, then a pirate." Vinyl's face suddenly shifted from irritation to concern. "How bad is he? Reggie, I mean."

"I told you already," Octavia said, sounding confused, "Unless you wanted me to run down the obvious list."

Vinyl replied by simply staring at the mare sans eyeballs.

"Alright then… He dislocated his shoulder, he has numerous burns, a particularly bad one running down his back, and both his hind legs are broken in multiple spots, Octavia said, letting out an exasperated sigh, "He was much worse when he arrived, so there's that."

"How _much_ worse?" Vinyl pressed.

"he was comatose and bleeding internally. If he keeps healing this way, he'll be on his hooves in weeks."

"I guess millions of dollars can buy pretty fancy medical treatment." Aurora pondered aloud.

"Yes, and we should be thankful to him for extending that protection to you and my sister!" The grey mare asserted. "You two aren't dead, but you would have died upon seeing the bill."

"He's way better to me than he should be. It's my fault he's so banged up and yet there he is being…"

"Did you push him down the stairs?" Aurora asked rather suddenly. "Did you light him on fire, and break his legs?"

"Uh, no?"

"Then it isn't your fault. Whoever gave Pinkie that detonator is the one to blame here. Not you."

"Detonator?"

"I promise, I'll get some answers from her." The pink pony walked away without another word.

"She's really intense, huh?" Vinyl asked.

"Very." Octavia replied with an edge to her voice.

"Listen…about last night"—

"Vinyl Scratch, I was rude. In fact, I was obnoxious, hurtful, and above all, childish. You were mature enough to give me _real_ advice and I just threw it back at you!" Octavia paused and took a deep breath. "You were right, and I was fifteen kinds of wrong."

"Wow, under any other circumstances I'd milk the crap out this…" Vinyl thought for a moment. "Have you talked to her? You know, about how you feel?"

"How _do_ I feel?"

"Betrayed. She won't tell you, the mare who used to be her closest friend, a damn thing and it drives you crazy. Like she doesn't trust you. But you know why she's doing it. It's for the same reasons she did it back then. She's trying to protect you. Only…Octavia?" Vinyl tilted her head in her direction, "I think this is one time you have to let her do that."

"So you're saying I should let her leave without a trace? Disappear again…"

"I'm saying that none of us can help her right now, and giving her another reason to feel bad won't do her any good." Vinyl Scratch couldn't see the dejected look in Octavia's eyes. "She's a stubborn pony. But she seriously believes whatever she's dealing with is beyond our influence."

"I suppose that makes sense." Octavia's deep purple eyes glassed over in silence. "And what about us?"

"As soon as I get these wrappings off I'm game for a little hanky-panky," Vinyl Scratch shot her crazy grin at the mare, catching her completely off guard. "Building's won't be the only things exploding, _if_ you know what I mean."

Octavia and Vinyl Scratch shared an extended, genuine laugh, their temporarily crippled friendship mending right then and there. As the humor died down, Vinyl Scratch's demeanor changed to a serious one. She gathered her thoughts before asking Octavia a serious question.

"What do you think about Reggie? Have you two talked at all?"

Octavia seemed to pause for a moment, moving around in place before mustering up an answer.

"We spoke. He seems like your standard, bubbly drunk with a passion for eccentricity. Quite honestly, I think he's insane, possibly damaged"—

"Octavia, I get it"—

"And one of the nicest stallions I've had the pleasure of meeting. He possesses an air about him that's rather inviting, and yet there's something more that I can't quite place." Octavia said, changing her tone. "I think you finally found a friend I approve of."

"Today is just too weird." Vinyl said, mulling over her response. "I'm glad you like him. I came to him to ask for his help, and he reminded me why I liked him in the first place."

"And why would that be?"

"It's like…he just _gets_ it."

"And what exactly _is_ it?"

"I don't know…nothing? Everything?"

"Well…I'm sure he'd appreciate that sentiment." Octavia said with a jovial tone of voice.

"You can't tell him I said that. He'd never let me hear the end of it."

"I can promise you that I won't tell him anything."

"…Tavi?" Vinyl asked with evident worry.

"Yes, dear?" Octavia said, her voice sounding much more gruff and loud.

"He's in the bed across from me. I'm _also _in intensive care…aren't I?" Vinyl asked.

"I'll leave you two alone." Octavia said, giggling as she walked out of the room.

"So…I get it." Reggie said in a mocking tone. "What other mysterious qualities do I possess that get you all…_hot and bothered._"

* * *

"The worst day," Vinyl said, planting a hoof to her forehead, "Ever."

"I had fun." Reggie said with a wide smile.

"You two certainly are a pair." Rarity said with a small, complimentary smile.

"Really? I always pictured them as more of a grapefruit." Thundervolt said with an idiot's grin plastered on his face. He could _hear_ Aurora's eye twitching from across the room.

"Nobody would blame you for leaving him." Rainbow Dash said to Fluttershy seriously.

"I'll have to think about it." She replied softly. "I mean it was bad, but I'm sure they could get worse…"

"You have no idea…" Aurora said, her tortured soul expressing itself with melancholy.

"So we should probably move this here story along. Ain't no tellin' when we're gonna get to Canterlot." Applejack interjected.

"Applejack, we've been on the train for about four hours. This isn't the express train that we're used to either. All of them were being serviced." Twilight said, putting forth the information professionally. "We won't be in Canterlot until late tonight."

"Ah retract mah statement then, and put forth a vote. All in favor of eatin' an early dinner?" Applejack said, raising her hoof excitedly.

"Aye!" Spike yelled, waving his hand at the speed of sound.

"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash shouted.

"Aye." Aurora, Fluttershy, and Thundervolt said in unison.

"YAY FOOD!" Pinkie bellowed.

"Majority rules. Let's eat." Reggie said, looking over to Vinyl expectantly.

"Reggie, you know damn well what you can eat." The mare deadpanned.

"I'm going to the food cart before that comment takes a turn for the worst." Thundervolt said seriously.

"Ditto." Aurora said, hopping out of her seat as fast as she could.

And so the four unicorns, three pegasi, three earth ponies, and one baby dragon evacuated their seats in search of sustenance. The train practically groaned as the majority of its passengers changed positions. Not as much as anypony would be after the food however.

* * *

**_No, I'm not going to write them eating. I'm sure you can all imagine the thrills without me narrating it. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I hope that it answered a few questions so that you won't kill me over the other thousand it must have raised. I'm working on the next update so hopefully it shouldn't take long. Let me know what you thought about this chapter. I love getting feedback, and as you all know, each word you type in praise, flame, criticism, or non-sexual pleasure accelerates the update time by ONE WHOLE MINUTE!_**

**_Note: All sexual commentary can be PM'd to "Flammenwerfer" for quick and sensual replies. (Undeadicus, do what you want. I refuse to satisfy your needs.)_**


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